


Puppet Love

by Felidae5



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Aftermath of Violence, Blood and Violence, Character Death, Gore, Graphic Description of Corpses, M/M, Rape, Rape Aftermath, non-con
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-03
Updated: 2019-10-14
Packaged: 2020-11-22 21:24:16
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 25
Words: 25,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20880914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Felidae5/pseuds/Felidae5
Summary: Upon Cleopatra's/empressoflight's request, I decided to upload one of my earlier and goriest stories here. This is not a happy one. Hence the tags.You've been warned.Originally posted Aug. 2004





	1. Falling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A freak accident puts Jounouchi in a defenseless state. How will his friends, family and most of all, Kaiba Seto react?

_1\. Falling_

The visit at his mother’s and sister’s home had gone surprisingly smooth and he was filled with a serene content, as the train rushed from Osaka towards Domino City.  
Stepping out of the toilet, he pulled his zipper closed and sauntered back to his seat opposite the door, letting himself plop into the faded green cushions.  
Just as he was seated, he heard a high-pitched, deafening shriek, and then his eyes widened in horror, when something wound its way through the corridors of the train in front of him.  
Dark crimson, freckled with black, silver and green, inbetween flashes of white, blue, grey and gold, it appeared to be an abomination straight out of hell.  
Instinctively, Jou pulled his arms and legs in front of him, shielding his body, a split-second before the door vi-a-vis of him bulged, then popped out of its frame and took a leap towards him.  
He screamed, when the heated metal and glass smashed against his knees and elbows, the heat melting the polyester of the upholstery to the doorframe and scorching his arms and legs, even as tiny haircracks appeared in the glass.  
But Katsuya noticed none of this, he was too busy screaming when the force of the door pushed his seat backwards, then flipped him over and over, bumping him into hard, soft, flexible, stiff objects, before sending him into a sheer endless fall.  
The seat landed on its rear left side, shaking him bad enough to rattle his teeth, and then, everything was quiet.  
At least he thought it was, until his ears reajusted to the eerie silence which was filled with cries, screams, sobs, crashing and sizzling sounds.  
Something landed on top of him and he yelled, trying to escape, only to find that the door and seat were building a solid unity. His jacket was glued to the glass, keeping his arms crossed in front of his face, and the door pushed his knees into his chest, making breathing a difficult task.  
Again and again, things fell on him, but his make-shift capsule saved him from any further injuries, letting him relax enough to recognize the items as bits and shreds of chairs, windows, frames, toilets, sinks and the likes.  
Inbetween, something would hit the glass with a wet thud, leaving a dark smear on the glass, and Katsuya swallowed the bile rising in his throat, realising, those were most probably body parts.  
A single, sock-and-leather clad foot tumbled across his field of sight and Jou panted, trying to supress the urge to throw up.  
He screamed, when something rolled over the door which at first appeared to be a doll’s head, only the bloodied neck revealing it as a sleeping infant’s.  
Something heavy, undefinable smashed into the door, shattering the glass, sending the baby’s head to hit his knee and reached for him with long, blood-soaked, terribly deformed fingers.  
The screaming stopped abruptly.

“..first and second degree burns, several cracked ribs, a sprained wrist and twisted ankle, one knee-cap shattered, a mild concussion, but otherwise..I’d say, he’s one lucky guy, so far” stated the doctor, only to be interrupted by Yuugi:  
“_Lucky??_ You call **that** _lucky_?!? Have you taken a close look at Jounouchi? He’s.. he’s-totally absent, he doesn’t reply to anything you ask him, he doesn’t recognize us, he just lies there, like..like..”  
The short duelist broke down into ears, even as Honda lay his arms around him for comfort. Shizuka was sobbing hysterically into Anzu’s shoulder, the elder teen letting her tears flow freely over her pale cheeks.  
Pushing his glasses to his forehead, the doctor rubbed his tired eyes before replying:  
“I would say, your friend was incredibly lucky to even be alive, let alone in such a good condition.”  
He moved his glasses back and continued:  
“There were three-hundred and twenty-eight passengers and crew members on that train. From those, only eighty-five bodies have been identified in the past four days, we have over one-hundred fifty-six dismembered corpses and eighty-two, which have been either burned or squished beyond recognition.”  
He paused and swallowed hard; obviously he had been along the search teams.  
“Katsuya here is one among five survivors, and the only one with all body parts intact.” 

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
What? Not my fault, if you skipped the tags.


	2. Sleeping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Is everybody acquainted for? I mean, everybody who isn't underage or afraid of gore? Yes? Good. Here's a quiet chapter.

_2\. Sleeping_  
  
“-government has declared this a national memorial day, to honor the 323 deceased people, who lost their lives in last week’s train crash, the tragic accident involving the 14.45 from Osaka to Domino City and the empty train of the same line, which was headed for the Osaka train deposit, when the trains collided some thirty miles outside of Domino City. Investigation revealed that the horrible event was the result of wrong lightings and a flux in the semi-automatic ranging system, which had previously already been reported of causing minor difficulties regarding both the Osaka-Domino City-line aswell as the Nara-Koube-line. We now switch to our correspondent-“  
Yuugi turned off the screen and shook his head sadly, mourning both the loss of lives and the state of his friend.   
Honda, Shizuka and he were gathered around Jou’s bed, the blond staring unseeing ahead of him, inbetween blinking, but otherwise silent.  
His physical wounds had healed so far that the doctors thought of releasing him within the next three weeks, even before, if they could be sure he would be tended well to afterwards. And that was the problem.  
All knew that his father couldn’t care less, seeing as he only had shown up once, taken a short glance at his wounded son, signed the according papers and left without further notice. And while each one of them would have gladly taken up the task of nursing Katsuya back to health, they all were too aware that none of them possessed the needed money, equipment or knowledge to do so properly.  
There was a soft rapping at the door, which was opened just enough to let a shock of raven locks and big, innocent grey eyes peek through.  
“Hya, everyone. May-may I come in?” he asked quietly, earning a nod from both Shizuka and Yuugi. Honda smiled:  
“Sure, come in Mokuba, you know, you’re always welco-Seto?!?”  
Everybody turned around to stare at the tall brunet, who stood frozen in the doorframe, blue eyes wide with shock, as he took in Katsuya’s state.  
Three long strides took him across the room next to the bed, long fingers reached out and stopped mid-air, hovering over the younger teen’s bandaged hand, before touching it lightly.  
“Mu-Jou? Jounouchi?” he asked, his voice sounding faint and brittle in his own ears.  
“He can’t hear you” whispered Shizuka, never taking her eyes from her brother.  
“What?” rasped Seto, glaring down at her. Yuugi nodded and continued:  
“The doctors said, his brain just..shut down, because it couldn’t hande so much..horror in such a short amount of time. It’s common to prevent the psyche from taking too much damage, especially, if the body is injured aswell. They said, they didn’t know when Katsuya would come around again, seeing as it’s only been a week-“  
“Don’t give me that crap, Muuto! Do you really think something so profane like an accident could make the mu-Jou’s mental resolve crumble like that? He’s been through worse and never-“  
Whack!  
Several jaws dropped, when Shizuka’s small hand connected with the elder Kaiba’s face, leaving a rapidly blossoming imprint on his cheek.  
“How-how dare you talk like that about my brother, you..bastard! You have no idea, what happened! You always put him down, belittle and mock him, but you’re not even worth spelling his name! I despise you! I hate you Seto Kaiba!” she screamed, before collapsing back onto the chair, crying hard.  
Seto hung his head in embarassment, a faint blush creeping up his neck. A heavy hand on his shoulder made him look up and turn around to face Honda. Clearing his throat, the younger brunet explained:  
“It’s not the accident itself, which made Jou retreat into this..state. It’s what happened _after_ the crash.”  
Seto furrowed a questioning brow.  
“When they found him, he was crammed into his seat, shielded by a door, wreckage and-and-body parts all around and on top of him.”  
Blue eyes widened in terrified understanding.  
“He spent eighteen hours buried under dismembered corpses. Without a chance to escape.”  
  
°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
After all these yeas, Shizuka slapping Seto clear across the face still makes me smile...


	3. Crying

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little pov from Jounouchi..might get some people feeling more than slightly sick. As in _very_.  
*means past events

_3\. Crying_   
  
*He couldn’t breath, his knees were digging into his chest and his arms were immobilized. A foot, blood-soaked, the shattered bone peeking out from the raw wound, hopped onto the glass part of the door, stomping and kicking, trying to find a way in. Soon it was joined by a head with closed eyes, veins, arterias and torn bits of cartilage serving as its hold, as it begann thrusting in sync with the foot, both demanding access. Despite his confines, he screamed.  
And then, something heavy smashed the glass door, sending the foot flying while the head advanced towards him. He didn’t want to look up, he felt something warm, sticky brush his cheek and, against better knowledge, blinked his brown eyes open.  
The being had two heads, one crammed into the other, a male and a female one.   
From the male’s, there was only the mouth left, pieces of what appeared to be lungs and intestines seemingly trying to escape the wide open jaw. He nearly threw up, when he saw what must have been the man’s testicles resting somewhere within the shattered ribcage.  
It was the woman’s arm that touched him, her mouth had been pulled up over her nose, one eye resting just above her right canine, the other one adorning her tongue. Next to it, as if providing a throw-rug, was a pierced ear decorated with a golden stud.  
Her breasts had been turned inside out and pushed up above her shoulders, revealing the ribs spred out like butterfly wings.  
Unlike the man, her internal organs were completely gone, leaving her hollow, a mere, gruesome shell.  
He shivered, when gravity started pulling the bodies towards him, his gaze wandered upwards, to the teeth rammed into the woman’s forehead and the eye crowning them.  
And then, the eye blinked.  
And blinked.  
And blinked.  
And blinked…*  
  
The silence reigned heavy within the care ward.  
Finally, Kaiba broke the quiet and asked:  
“What happens to him now? I mean, is he going to stay here, or-?”  
Shizuka shook her head.  
“No, once his wounds have healed, he will be sent to a mental institue where they will try to crack through his walls.”  
“Like hell he will!” roared Seto infuriated,   
“He’s you brother, your friend, and you’re just shoving him away like that? This just proves that I was right, and your stupid babbling of trust and friendship was but empty words! When he really needs you, when he should be able to rely on you, you turn tails and run!”   
Honda pushed him away from Shizuka, shouting back:  
“It’s not that simple, chip-for-brains! We wanted to take him home, but the insurance of the railway company doesn’t cover the costs if you’re nursing him at home. And his father’s insurance only comes up for the mental theraphy, and we then still have to remodel his home to fit his needs!”  
He took a step back and drew a deep breath to calm himself, before he continued:  
“We already tried to throw together our college funds, but they would only last an year or so, two max, if we really draw it tight.” Honda hung his head in defeat.  
“There is no other possibility, if we really want to help Katsuya. None of us can afford taking him home for recovery.”  
Everybody was quiet for a while, then Seto stated:  
“I do.”  
Four pairs of eyes flew wide open in surprise, as the others gawked at him in disbelief.  
“_You_? Him? But-why-when-how?” babbled Yuugi, before letting Yami take over, who demanded:  
“Why would _you_ care about Jou’s well-being? After all the pain and hurt you caused him, why this sudden interest in his health? It’s not like the two of you were very close, and now, suddenly, you’re willing to take him to your home and nurse him back to health?”  
The pharao sneered disgustedly.  
“Pardon me if I affront you, _Seto_, but unless you can give me a really good reason for doing so, I will not let you handle Katsuya’s matters in any way!” he spat, and the others nodded in agreement.  
Seto looked at his younger brother, but Mokuba only stared at him in puzzlement.  
Crossing his arms over his chest, he lowered his head and answered:  
“You have a point there, Yami. Given, the pu-Jou and I were never friends to begin with, but I must confess…I was impressed.” Everyone except for Shizuka face-faulted, and Kaiba continued hastily:  
“Not by his meager dueling skills or brains” ’or lack thereoff’ he thought to himself,   
“but by his willpower. He never ga-gives up, never mind how bad the odds are, and he takes every risk to protect those close to him, even sacrifices himself in order to do so. He is stunningly loyal and optimistic and, aside of Yami, he was the only one who dared to talk back to me. Even after he learned who I am and that I could have his ass thrown out of school in the wink of an eye, he never stopped to give back in interest. Despite the fact that he knew I was stronger, more skilled and agile than him, he never backed out of a fight with me. He always told me straight to the face what he thought of me, be it positive or negative, and I respect that in a person. Besides, nobody deserves to be in such a condition, nobody.”   
Yami, Yuugi and Honda glared at him while Mokuba gave a faint smile, and then Shizuka made a sound, that could have been a half-giggle, half-sob. Turning her green-brown dove eyes to Seto, she hushed:  
“Sounds, as if you really like my brother.”  
The elder Kaiba drew back, but before he could reply, Mokuba laughed:  
“Of course you do, Seto! That’s the reason you’re always picking on him!”  
A quick blush crossed Seto’s face, too fast to be noticed, and he growled:  
“That’s not true and you know it! I don’t like anybody aside of you, Mokuba. I thought, I made that clear long ago!”  
Yami relaxed, Yuugi grinned, and Honda patted the slightly taller brunet’s shoulder.  
“Hey, come on, it’s ok, I mean, it’s not like you’re the only gay person in the world.”  
Now it was Seto’s turn to face-fault, but he caught himself at the last possible moment and roared:  
“Who claimed I was gay? I only said that I acknowledge Jou’s willpower and loyalty, nothing else! Besides,”   
he regained his composure, looking down at the group,   
“if you intent on me to take care and custody of Katsuya, you had rather treat me with more respect.”  
He brushed some imaginary dust from where Honda’s hand had touched his coat. That’s when he noticed everybody staring slack-jawed at him. Frowning, he asked:  
“What?” Yuugi was first to snap his mouth closed and answering:  
“You-you just called Jou by his first name!” A brown eyebrow rose delicately.  
“So?”   
“You’ve never done so before, nii-san! Does that mean, you might finally get along with Katsuya?” cheered Mokuba.  
Sighing, Seto replied:  
“We will see, Mokuba, we will see.”  
  
°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
That moment when you hear the bells toll...


	4. Healing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to the danger zone -or in this case, the Kaiba mansion. Far more luxurious, comfortable and dignfied but no less hazardous.

_4\. Healing_   
  
The big guest room had been competely remodeled, now a state-of-the art care ward with the newest and most advanced technics and apparatuses money could buy. Seto had given his doctor advise to organize a complete crew of specialists which were waiting 24/7 at his beck and call, whenever Jou would so much as sneeze.   
Said youth was just being transported into the mansion under the vigil of two doctors and both Kaiba brothers. His sister and friends watched from a few meters away, warily exchaging looks.  
“Risking to sound like one ungrateful stud -am I the only one who thinks, we just sentenced Katsuya to a fate worse than death?” asked Honda timidly, making sure Seto couldn’t hear him. Several heads shook in deny, and Shizuka sighed:  
“Regardless how much we dislike it, I still think it’s the best for Katsuya. This way we’re not restricted to visiting hours or have to worry about lack of staff. I must say, I’m more than satisfied with what Seto has arranged for my brother.”  
Under her breath, she added:  
“Never mind, how wrong it feels.”  
  
He nearly seemed to drown in the bed, his golden eyes the only thing discering his pale face from the white sheets.  
Still, the doctors were pleased, because there had been a slight change in Jou’s behaviour:  
If you called him by his name and ordered him to do simple actions like, raising an arm or sitting upright, he would obey. He never spoke a word, though, never smiled, cried or frowned, but always wore this same blank expression.  
The doctors advised them to keep talking to and with him, including him in everyday actions like games, watching TV, listening music, taking walks and so on.  
Sitting around his bed, his friends and sister scheduled the coming week to perfection, so there would always be at least one of them around, even if they had school or seatings.  
Once everything was settled, they took turns in feeding, washing and dressing him into his pajamas and spent time with him until it was almost too late to go home.  
Kaiba ordered his chaffeur to drive each of them to their respective homes, then went to say goodnight to his little brother.  
Raven locks were sprawled across the soft cushion, limp body spread-eagle, but Mokuba wasn’t sleeping.   
His blue-grey eyes stared at the ceiling, his mind contemplating today’s events.  
The quiet creak of the door and the soft steps coming closer pulled him from his reverie.  
“Not yet asleep, Mokuba?” asked Seto calmly, as he sat at the edge of the bed, tucking his little brother in.  
The young boy shook his head, then turned his gaze to the brunet.  
“He’s staying here, isn’t he?”  
Seto nodded.  
“Until he is up and about and able to take care of himself, never mind, how long that takes. I promise.”  
A huge grin appeared on Mokuba’s face, who chuckled:  
“Good! Think, you might finally get around to admit your feelings for him?”   
Seto’s gaze could have shattered boulders.  
“I have no feelings whatsoever towards Jounouchi, aside of pity and responsibility. Have I made myself clear?”  
Mokuba smirked.  
“Crystal. Good night, nii-san!”  
“Good night, otouto.”  
Stepping out of his brother’s room, he closed the door behind him and crossed the hall towards Jou’s dorm.  
He entered, then closed and locked the door firmly, taking in his surroundings.  
As he sauntered towards the mute figure on the bed, he gave a cold, tight smirk, before slipping off his shoes and crawling across Jou, until their faces were on one height.  
Several moments, he searched the blond’s face for any kind of emotion, then crushed his lips against the younger teen’s, devouring this one’s mouth with his tongue. Moaning and panting, Seto twisted out of his shirt and pants and got rid of his boxers, before pulling the sheet off Katsuya.  
His blue eyes shone with hunger and lust and something darker, when he rasped:  
“At last, after all this time, you’re mine, you insolent dog!”  
Stroking his already hard member to full attention, he bent down and whispered into Katsuya’s ear:  
“Jou? Jou, open your mouth for me. Be a good boy, ne?”  
He did as told and immediately, Seto pushed his cock past the blond’s lips, starting to thrust in and out of Jou’s mouth.  
Faster and faster he pistoned, gaze fixed on Katsuya’s expressionless features, inbetween grunting:  
“Swallow, damn you, swallow! I know, you can do it!”  
And really, his ward’s throat relaxed more and more, until he deep-throated Seto.  
The CEO was in a world of bliss, perfect teeth faintly grazing the skin of his member, the rough tongue elicting sparks of electricity from his arousal and the constricting muscles squeezing his cock in all the right places…  
“Oh, fuck, kami..Yes!” screamed Seto, as he came inside Katsuya’s mouth, pumping his seed down that heavenly throat as he rode on the waves of sexual fullfillment.  
“Drink it up, Jou, drink it all up..there’s a good dog, yeah, drink it…”  
Kaiba watched the mute boy comply, suckling every last drop out of his rapidly shrinking manhood.  
Satiated, he got off Jou and, after sloppily cleaning himself up in the adjunctant bathroom, he dressed back in his clothes before returning to the bed.  
Again, his eyes searched for a wince, a frown, the slightest flicker of emotion, but there was none.  
He nodded in grim satisfaction before licking Katsuya’s slightly swollen lips, tasting himself in the blond’s mouth.  
It was highly arousing, and Seto plundered Katsuya’s mouth once more, as he tucked his helpless toy into bed.  
Moments later, the only visitor in Katsuya’s room was the bright half-moon, who cast his cold, blue light on the scene.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
All violence and bloodshed aside, I think this is the part in the entire story that upsets me the most.  



	5. Gambling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And now for some day-by-day idle happenings. Also, Seto's slightly..OOC, here. Slightly. Just a pinch.  
* is Jounouchi's pov

_5\. Gambling_  
  
*The eye was following him.  
Despite the fact that he had managed to get out of his make-shift prison and could freely walk about, the eye was always there, towing the maimed cadaver with it, as if it were some kind of perverted robe.  
It was always there, watching, waiting -and when the opportunity came, it would hurt him.  
And he knew, it was looking out to hurt his sister and friends, too. He couldn’t let that happen, so, in return, he observed the eye aswell.  
Never letting down his guard, never letting it out of sight, barely blinking…*  
  
“Very good, Katsuya, and now move your legs a little faster-yes, excellent, that’s it! You’re doing great!”  
Shizuka watched the PR-therapist, as he pulled Jou through the well-temperated waters at the shallow end of the swimming pool. Her brother was rapidly recovering, although he was still not conciously interacting with his surroundings.  
Anno Koichi frowned slightly, as he observed Jou’s efforts at swimming. He had been with the boy from day one and, although surprised at this one's rather rapid developments, he was worried.  
Had the blond previously been limp, more a rag doll than a human, he was now tense as a drawn bow.  
And then there were those bruises, that just wouldn’t heal.  
If he didn’t know better, he would have sworn they were hickeys, but who would-?  
  
“I assure you, Kikuchi-sensei, those haematomas are fresh, plus, several are on his inner thighs, at the small of his back and the crook of his neck! There’s no way he could have inflicted those upon himself! He’s usually so stiff, when I come to train him, that I have problems even bending his arms. I doubt, he even so much as flexes a toe when he’s by himself.”  
Koichi regarded the doctor, who digested this piece of information he had received from the therapist.  
Finally, Kikuchi-sensei nodded and suggested:  
“Write a small note, a separate one, so we can keep an eye on this, until we have further proof. For the moment, this remains strictly between the two of us. If, and _only_ if, the assailant is one of his friends, we don’t want the guilty one spooked.”  
Anno complied, grabbed a post-it note pad and drabbled down a few words. Then he stuck the small paper between the cover and the last page of the folder containg Katsuya’s medical history, before retrieving his equipment and jacket and heading to his next patient.  
  
Sneering, Seto threw the briefcase into one and his coat into another corner. His laptop was roughly placed on a random cupboard, as Kaiba stomped towards the living quarters.  
The meeting had gone surprisingly bad. His counselor(or ex-counselour, as a matter of fact) had left a loophole the size of Kyushu in the contract, and his business partners were more than eager to use this faux-pas to their full advantage.  
Or, to put it blunt, they stripped him bare and left him standing in the rain.  
Needless to say, Seto was in a rotten mood when he stormed inside the kitchen.  
The only one awaiting him was his warm-kept dinner. He lifted the lid to inspect the food, sniffed, narrowed his eyes, and tossed the entire set on the floor with a quick swipe of his arm, cursing and raging through the loud noise caused by the impact.  
Moments later, Mokuba came running, Honda, Yuugi and Anzu hot on his trails.  
The group froze dead in their tracks, when they saw Kaiba seething over the chaos. Hesitantly, his brother asked:  
“Uhh, Seto, are you-?”  
“No, I’m _not_ okay, understood?” yelled Seto. He realized he was being unfair to his little brother, but he couldn’t help it. Waving a hand in the general direction of his had-been dinner, he roared:  
“I told that stupid dingbat of a cook, I wanted sautéed Red Snapper with rice and mushrooms for dinner, and what do I get? Bonito! _Bonito_?!? How can you confuse _that_?!? Or does she think, I’m too dumb to recognize the difference? Do I appear to be brain-dead, or what?”  
He panted; his anger rarely got the better of him, but when it did, it threw him off-balance.  
Anzu chose that exact moment to pipe up:  
“Uhmm, actually, she _did_ make a plate of Red Snappers for you, Seto.”  
Mokuba kicked her in the shin, hissing through clenched teeth:  
“Shut up, Anzu, now’s not-” Kaiba’s head snapped in her direction.  
“Excuse me?” The brunette girl giggled nervously, playing with the hem of her jumper.  
“Well, there were so many dishes, and, hmmh, I thought, it wouldn’t make a difference, so I..ate…them…”  
She gulped, shrinking under Seto’s icy glare.  
“You _what_?”  
“Listen, I’m sorry, I really am, if I had known it was yours I would have never touched it, honestly! It’s just, well, it was there, I was hungry, and so-”  
“Get out”, ordered Seto calmly. Anzu’s eyes went wide as saucers.  
“W-what?” she stammered, causing Seto to take a threathening step forwards.  
His eyes were sparkling with hatred, when he spat:  
“I said, get out of my house, you demented bitch! You have no idea, how much you annoy me with your consistant babbling, thoughtless behaviour and fake friendship talk! I only let you come here because you’re Jou’s friend, although I have no idea, where he got _that_ idea in the first place! Considering the way you treat him is so-_demeaning_!”  
“Oh, and _you_ treated him better, ne?” yelled Anzu back, tears brimming her eyes.  
“_You_ were the one who constantly put him down, insulting him back and forth by calling him, mutt, dog, whelp and so on! _You_ always belittled him; even when he faced the most dangerous situations, you just kept on trying to break his spirit! And the more he fought back, the crueler you became towards him, so who’s been demeaning, huh?”  
Seto cast her a long, cold glare, before pushing past her.  
“That may be, but I’m trying to make amends. Besides, unlike you, I never once claimed to be his friend. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go check on Jou.”  
He sauntered out the kitchen, but stopped after a few steps and added over his shoulder:  
“Oh, and Anzu, when I return, I want you gone. Period.”  
He resumed his walk, the others staring at his retreating back, Anzu fighting with the tears, which threatened to fall.  
Finally, with a choked sob, she gave in to them, and dashed down the hall towards the main door, Yuugi following her suit.  
Honda and Mokuba followed them with their eyes, before the brunet teen faced the young boy and asked:  
“Ok, what the hell was _that_ about? I can’t remember the last time I saw Seto get this mad outside a dueling arena.”  
Mokuba only shook his head.  
“I have no idea. He’s usually only like this when something important at work went really, really bad.”  
Honda cocked a brow.  
“What kind of bad?”  
“Stage-dive-without-an-audience bad?” offered Mokuba, making Honda wince in sympathy.  
“Ouch.”  
“Ouch indeed.”  
  
Katsuya lay there, unmoving, his eyes fixed on something in the distance.  
Seto looked down at the younger teen, elegant fingers playing idly with long, golden tresses.  
Mokuba had been right about his brother having feelings for Katsuya, but was wrong about their true nature:  
Seto had never had a crush on Katsuya, he was obsessed with him.  
The very moment he first set eyes on Jounouchi Katsuya, Kaiba was struck with awe. He was taken by the blond’s sheer natural beauty:  
The wild, unruly hair, the lean, yet powerful body, the fierceness in those honey eyes, the angelic tenor of his voice, echoing the fake machoism and true braveness accompaning his unrivaled willpower, fueled by his undying optimism…  
He became Kaiba’s greatest goal, aside of reclaiming his title as number one duelist in the world, and ironically, the one thing standing between him and his golden boy, was the same that stood between him and his title:  
Yuugi Muutou.  
He was Jou’s best friend, which made the short duelist’s enemies Jou’s enemies as well.  
Seto had taken to call Katsuya ‘dog names’ in an effort to hint at his desire to claim Jou, knowing full well, his friends would consider them as simple insults. Only Jou had immediately heard out the hidden offer and made no secret of what he thought about it.  
Even if they were rejections, at least he had his love’s undivided attention, and that alone was worth the pain of being denied.  
To be honest, the only thing which had saved Seto from being branded as a love-sick dunce was his cold, uncaring demeanor towards everybody, especially Katsuya, because, had he been a ‘normal’ person, people would have called him blunt:  
The way he always picked on Jou for no apparent reason, how he often _accidentally_ bumped into the younger teen, using the short contact to rub his body against the blond’s gorgeous one..it was almost painfully obvious, that he wanted Katsuya.  
And now, the core of his dreams was his to behold, with a few restrictions and obstacles, of course, but Kaiba had never been one to shy away from a challenge…  
Seto frowned.  
He had absent-mindedly been flipping through Katsuya’s health chart and reached the last page, when something yellow drew his attention.  
Attached to the dark-blue cover was a small post-it note:  
_Further observ. o. mult. bruises->phys. abuse? K. Anno_  
Only the faintest spark in his cold, blue orbs gave away the fact, that Seto’s brilliant mind was already coming up with a plan. °°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
*cough* Seto's not the only one crushing on Jou *cough*


	6. Deceiving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oops, sorry, completey forgot about updating this. A touch of gore to make up for the wait, ne?

_6\. Deceiving_

Koichi Anno sighed, as he rushed homewards.  
Only two more blocks, and he could call it a day.  
He and Kikuchi-sensei had been paying particular attention to the more suspicious bruises on Jou’s body, but there had been no other change than that they healed without any further complications.  
Still, the blond was becoming more and more stiff. Then again, he might be slowly regaining conciousness. Or maybe, Koichi was simply seeing things-  
“Freeze, sucker!” Koichi looked up, his mind still so occupied with Jou’s case, that it took him nearly two seconds to recognize the glinting object pointed at his face:  
A knife.  
Sighing, he slowly rose one hand in defeat as his other one reached for his pocket. A dark snarl interrupted his actions:  
“Keep your purse. I’m not after your money.”  
Puzzled, Koichi wanted to ask why, but his words caught in his throath, when something pierced his stomach.  
Looking down, he saw the blade sliding out from a wound just above his navel, blood seeping out of it, drenching his shirt.  
“Bu-but, why?”   
he stammered, just to have his hand grabbed and twisted behind his back. A sharp blow to his neck sent him to his knees, his other hand was being pulled and then a faint click rang in his ears. His arms were released and he realized, he had been handcuffed.  
His eyes widened in fear, as he panted between painful breaths:  
“What-why are you..doing this? I never hurt anybody and if I did, it wasn’t on purpose, I swear! I-I’m not related to anybody important, my family has no money, so please, just, let me go, ok?”  
His attacker tsked, as he crouched before the sobbing therapist, the tainted blade grazing his sweaty cheek ever so lightly.  
“I can’t let you do that. You might go around talking and that’s a risk I cannot afford. Really, everything would have been so simple,” the masked assassin sighed, as he clasped Anno’s face between his gloved fingers(surgery gloves, Koichi noticed, although he couldn’t care less) “you could have just looked away, but no, you chose to pay attention. Really, it would have beens so simple to just-look away!”  
Koichi screamed, as the dagger drove into his left eye socket and sliced the nerve, making the brown, bloodied orb plop out to roll over the sidewalk, before it came to a halt, chestnut iris reflecting the flickering light of the street lamp down the alley.  
He was crying now, blood and tears flowing down his face, as he trembled with fear and pain.  
Panic rose in Koichi’s chest, when he saw the cold steel aiming for his face again.  
“And with a snip and a scream, goes the soul’s second window screen” sing-sanged his tormentor over his piercing yell, as Koichi’s world turned black. By now, the therapist was a helpless, mumbling bundle of terrified agony.  
“Oh, kami, kami, please, no more, onegai, anything, I’ll do anything you want, just, please, stop, please..”  
A friendly pat on the shoulder made him flinch.  
“Don’t worry, we’re nearly done. But just to make sure you don’t talk…”  
His mouth was forced open, and before he knew what happened, his tongue was pulled out and cut in half.  
Anno tried to scream, but the gurgling sound forced out his throat was dulled by the bloodflow.  
“Now now, don’t worry, no need to be so-agitated, as I said, it’s nearly over…”

TAKEN FROM POLICE REPORT, CASE #356813  
MURDER ONE  
AUTOPSY OF VICTIM #5210  
NAME: Anno  
FIRST NAME: Koichi  
GENDER: male  
AGE: 32  
TIME OF DEATH: August, 12, approx. 23 hrs 50 min

_..with a single cut ripped open the victim’s peritoneum, severing the main arterias and large parts of his illeum, aswell as cracking open his duodenum and colon, before grazing his pancreas. The loss of the constricting stomach muscles caused his intestines to quill out of his abdomen, wich in itself proofed to be fatal. The cause of death, however, resued from the large hemorrhage due to the complete failure of his vena cava inf. His aorta, although punctuated..._

“He’s late” stated Honda, gazing at his watch, before turning back to the window.  
“Yeah, that’s unusual, seeing as he normally calls if he’s stuck in traffic. Think, he forgot?”   
mused Yugi, but shook his head, answering his own question.  
“No, I don’t think so, I mean, he’s scared of Kaiba and surely wouldn’t want to make him upset so-“  
“Yuugiii!!”  
came a shrill voice from the hall, and seconds later, Anzu burst through Katsuya’s bedroom door, panting heavily, cheeks stained with tears. She stumbled a few steps towards the short duelist, then sank to her knees and started sobbing hysterically. In a flash, Honda and Yuugi were at her side, gently nudging her up and guiding her to a chair, where she sat down heavily. Finally, after a few minutes of uncomfortable silence, which was only interrupted by her weeping, Anzu sniffled and lowered her hands from her face.  
“He’s dead” she stated, her voice dull and monotone.  
“What? Who’s dead? Kaiba?” asked Honda, but Anzu only shook her head.  
“No, Anno-san. They..they just brought it on the news. Oh kami, he was..he was murdered!”  
Another gush of tears escaped her eyes, even as Yuugi and Honda just stared at each other in shock.  
Inside his soul room, Yami had followed the conversation.  
And worried.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
*blinks innocently* What? Cut a CSI fan some slack, willya? All these year ago, and I still feel guilty for Koichi..he was such a sweet guy...


	7. Interrupting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few reactions to go around and nothing more.
> 
> *are Jounouchi's thoughts/visions

_7\. Interrupting_

“Aside of that, I had no contact whatsoever with Anno-san” replied Seto calmly.  
“I do tend to strictly separate private matters from business. If that will be everything, gentlemen-?”  
“Yes, indeed” said the police officer, writing down a few more letters, before closing the notepad.  
“Thank you for sacrificing so much of your precious time, Kaiba-san. We’ll be sure not to disturb you anymore.”  
The officer nodded and, picking up his hat, indicated his partner to follow him.  
Kaiba watched the door close from his position behind his desk, before slumping back in his chair.  
Now to look for a new physio-therapist…

Kikuchi-sensei sighed, as the door shut with a soft click.  
His interrogation had been long and straining, seeing as he had been the one who had recommended Anno.  
And now, for no apparent reason, the poor guy was dead.  
Murdered.  
Sighing again, Kikuchi-sensei picked up Jou’s medical report, unseeing flipping through the pages.  
As he reached the last page, he saw the little note sticking to the cover.  
Frowning, he tore it off and reread it several times.  
Something stirred insided his brain, a thought, the smallest glimpse of an idea, but before he could grasp it, it was gone.  
Shaking his head, the doctor crumpled the small paper in his hand.  
It was no longer needed, it had been nine days since the note was written, and physically, Jounouchi was almost as good as new, save for the kneecap.  
With a furrowed brow, he aimed at the reject bin, threw, and watched in dull satisfaction, as the tiny yellow ball bumped off the wall and the rim of the bin, before falling inside.  
His housemaid would bring out the trash tomorrow.

Smiling, Yami watched his best friend lather up the sponge and then drive the soapy item over his arms and chest.  
He sat next to the blond, wearing his boxers and making sure Katsuya washed thouroughly, by giving him short, pin-pointed advises.  
It had become a routine between him, Yugi and Honda to take over washing duty, since Shizuka wouldn’t for apparent reasons, Mokuba was not strong enough to support Jou, should the elder one fall, Anzu was a little too eager and Seto-  
well, just the thought of leaving Jou alone with Kaiba in a bathroom made the pharao’s stomach churn.  
His eyes darkened, as he thought about Anno-san.  
Something about his death seemed so..odd.  
Of course, Anzu had taken it rather hard, seeing, as she had a little crush on the elder man, who had shown no interest whatsoever in the perky teenager(Yuugi had once even caught him rolling his eyes at her behind her back.).  
Again, he sighed, before returning his attention to Katsuya, who rubbed his family jewels with quiet a little more than the needed care, making Yami wonder, if he didn’t feel pain at all.

*He felt so dirty.  
It had started touching him, doing..things to him, which he didn’t like.  
Yet, there was nothing he could do against it, if he wanted to keep his friends save, he had to comply.  
He still didn’t like it.  
But he knew, that if he hung on, if he baided his time, revenge would be his.  
A small smirk grazed his lips.*

Yami gawked.  
He could have sworn, there was a smile on Jou’s face just a second ago, not his trade-mark broad grin or usual happy laugh, nor even the soft smile he usually kept only for his sister, but, there had been a movement.  
Watching closely as he helped Katsuya rinse off then dry up and dress, Yami waited for another sign, but there was none.  
‘I suppose, it was wishfull thinking-still, I guess, I should inform the others…”

“..and then the knight of the Flame Sword helped the harpy-turned princess on his black stallion, and off they rode into the sunset. Soon they got married and had many children, and lived happily ever after” whispered Mokuba, as he finished with his self-written DuelMonsters fairy tale.  
He had written it originally for Seto, but his brother never had time to listen to him, so, instead, he had told it to Katsuya, after Yami had informed them about the reaction.  
Yawning, he closed his notebook and took a glance at the clock.  
01.13 am! His brother would kill him, if he knew he was here.  
Slipping off the chair, Mokuba muttered a choice curse he had picked up once from Jou, as his left slipper went hiding under the blond’s bed. He dove after it, if Seto found it here..Mokuba didn’t even wanted to think about the concequences.

*The boy was in danger.  
He could feel the eye drawing closer, and if he didn’t do something, and fast, it would put Mokuba under it’s spell aswell.  
Still, it was too far away to see or hear either him nor the raven-haired boy, so he drew together all his strength…*

Grey-blue eyes stared in mute shock at Jounouchi.  
The smirk, his infamous ‘just-wait-till-I-show-you-the-way-out-smirk had appeared out of literally nowhere.  
It was plastered on his face, and although his golden eyes still stared at the ceiling, Mokuba knew, it was directed at him.  
If nothing else, the thumbs-up sign would have been an indication.  
Taking a deep breath, the boy stepped closer and, clasping his smaller hand around the teen’s larger one, gave it a squeeze and whispered:  
“We’re waiting for you Katsuya-kun. Come home fast.”  
Rushing out the door, book and slippers in hand, he never noticed the shadow moving from its place beside the window.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
Don't you. DARE. Go dun-dun-duunnh! It's too early.


	8. Preparing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Please, please read this with caution. I would hate to trigger anybody's anxieties or the likes.

_Preparing_

Rising, Kikuchi-sensei nodded in approval, as he finished the examination. He was far more than satisfied with Jou’s progress.  
“Very well then, I am glad to say that Jounouchi-kun’s wounds have completely healed over the past three weeks. His knee might give him a few problems still, but I’m certain, with the care and therapy you provide him with, he’ll be able to use to its full extent within the next two months.”  
A collective sigh of relief went through the group, even Kaiba gave a small, tight smirk, before stepping in front of the doctor and, offering a hand, said:  
”Thank you very much, Kikuchi-sensei, for taking such good care of our friend. I must say, I am pleased with your work.”  
The doctor accepted the handshake, while replying:  
“Well, it’s the least I could do, seeing how this young, fine man keeps struggling and fighting, I just couldn’t give up on him. He deserves every chance he gets at recovery.”  
He started collecting his things, as he continued:  
“I will come and check on Katsuya every third Wednesday, if that’s okay with you? Just to make sure his knee doesn’t infect or to cut down some of his painkillers, antibiotics and so on. Agreed?”  
Everybody was ok with that, so Kaiba saw the doctor to the front door, where his limousine was already waiting to take Kikuchi-sensei home. The elder man waved over his shoulder, before entering the dark, shielded vehicle and closing the door.  
Seto let the limo drive past the mansion’s gate before allowing a broad, hungry grin to spread across his face.  
Patience was a virtue, and its fruits the sweeter, the longer one bared it.

He swallowed as much of the engorged member as possible, bobbing his head up and down in a quick, fluid rhythm.  
Sucking and twirling his tongue around the cock, Kaiba couldn’t wrap his mind about how good the blond tasted.  
One hand placed upon Katsuya’s hip, the other one fondling his balls, he sought to give Jou release, as to make him relax a little. He felt the younger one’s member twitch, a split-second before a large amount of semen hit the back of his throat, making him choke a little. Coughing, he tried to keep the salty, creamy fluid in while drinking down as much as possible.  
With the spilt excess, he traced figures across Katsuya’s trim stomach, before reaching for his own discarded pants.   
He rummaged through the various pockets, before retrieving three tubes of lubricant, each with a different flavor.  
‘Hmm,’ mused Seto, ‘peach, raspberry, blackcurrant-oh, the pain of the choice.’  
Settling for raspberry, he tossed the other two tubes on the nightstand as he undid the cap of the lubricant, then squeezed a generous amount of the sweet-smelling gel on his hand and cock.  
Generously, he coated his member, before reaching between Jou’s legs and probing one finger against this one’s tight opening.

*No! He wouldn’t let that happen! He didn’t care about the beating, whipping, scratching and biting, but rape, that was a completely different matter.  
Katsuya fought, he used every ounce of his being-*

Frowning, Kaiba tried to sooth the tense body under him, using one hand to gently caress and pet Katsuya’s body, while massaging the blond’s rectal muscles.  
It didn’t help, so he removed his gel-coated fingers from Jou’s opening to grope this one’s balls, kneading and squeezing them lightly, as he licked his way up to Katsuya’s ear, rasping profanities and sweet little nothings into this one’s ear.

*Katsuya shuddered, despite how good it felt, he knew it was a trap. But it was hard not to give in to that wonderful feeling which pooled up from his crotch…*

With a smirk, Kaiba switched hands, his right one still playing with Jou’s testicles, as the left one snaked between those firm globes, spreading them lightly and trusting one finger in, roughly.

*Gritting his teeth, Jou swore about being such a gullible idiot. His breath however caught in his throat, when he felt the intruding finger brush over his prostate-*

Seto froze, then grinned. He repeated the same motion again, and got the satisfaction of actually seeing Katsuya flinch a little.  
To be honest, it wasn’t more than a faint shiver, but it showed him, that the blond _did_ feel, what he was doing to him.  
Good.  
He circled his finger several times inside Jou’s body, before inserting a second one.

*Sweat started forming on his brow. He hated this, it sent tiny sparks of pain through his body, wich was no longer reacting to his orders. All he could do, was to lay there and try not to let it get to him.*

Purring, Seto pushed his fingers in and out of Jou’s manpussy, occasionally scissoring his limbs. The boy was slowly relaxing, just enough, to allow his third finger in.

*Again, white, sharp fangs were bared, this time accompanied by a low, furious growl, as anger flashed in Katsuya’s bright golden eyes.  
Even if now he was but a mere living doll, there would come a time, he would regain control over his body-and then kami have merci with his tormentor, because he wouldn’t..*

Satisfied with his preparations, Kaiba removed his fingers and set the tip of his cock at Jou’s entrance.  
Slowly, unerringly, he pushed himself inside the blond’s body, past the ring of tightened muscles and not stopping until he was buried to the hilt inside Jou.  
Then he just lay there, trying to control his ragged breathing.

*Katsuya screamed, a howl of rage and pain, mixed with loss, anger, frustration, despair and betrayal.  
And then something broke within the young man.*

“Kami, Jou, you’re so tight, yes, puppy, yes…”  
Seto pounded in and out of Katsuya’s helpless body, never minding if he made a lot of noise, since he had given the architect the order to make the room soundproof.  
Happiness filled his being, all this time waiting, watching, wanting the blond, but never being able to get more than a blowjob or to let out his anger on the defenseless teen…  
And now, finally, after all these months, he was his to claim.  
And he would make sure, to leave his mark on Jounouchi.

*Named one stared sightlessly at the eye above him.  
It stared down at him, not in contempt, but in pity and compassion.  
He frowned when it drew closer, blocking his entire view, and he tried to ignore it, but couldn’t divert his eyes.  
Instead, he lost himself in the deep, calming blue of the pulsating orb..*

Fast, hammering thrusts drove him deeper and deeper into Jou’s body, which had suddenly gone completely limp.  
But Kaiba couldn’t care less at the moment, because he was nearing his orgasm.  
His breath hitched, small gasps escaping his throat, and then he shouted Jou’s name as he came inside him.  
Collapsing on top of the smaller teen, he lay there, panting and huffing, sweat glistening on his body and dripping from his brow, as he let exhaustion pull him into oblivion.  
“Mine, all mine..” he whispered, before drifting off to sleep.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
Please read end notes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Even now, this entire scene makes my stomach lurch. Not because it affects me personally, but because I know what humans do to each other. It is for this very particular moment in the story I consider this to be my darkest work so far.
> 
> *are Jounouchi's thoughts


	9. Bending

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The morning after...and the aftermath

_9\. Bending_

He sauntered into the kitchen where everybody was gathered for breakfast, as usual since they had moved Jou into the mansion. This way, they could shedule the day ahead, including last-minute tests, dates, meetings and more.  
Kaiba’s chauffeur would then take each of the group to his or her destination, which actually bought them lots of time.  
Mokuba looked up, gulped down a mouthful of flakes and cheered:  
“Good morning Seto, how are you?” Seto smiled and nodded at his little brother, answering:  
“Good morning to you too, Mokuba, good morning to all of you. Thank you for the request, I had a splendid night.”  
Humming, he went over to the coffeemaker, poured himself a cup of the hot, black liquid and picked up the newspaper lying on the counter.  
Walking over to his seat, his eyes roamed over the headlines, when he noticed the eerie silence.  
Looking up, he saw five pairs of eyes staring at him. He cocked a questioning brow, and Mokuba chortled:  
“Uhh, are you..sure, you’re alright, nii-san? I mean, you’re not usually a morning person…”  
“Plus, you never did more than acknowledge our presence with more than one of your high-and-mighty nods, so why so cheerful?” asked Honda.  
The tilted brow sunk, and a well-known smirk appeared instead.  
“As I already told you, _Hiroto_, I had a very refreshing night. Aside of that, it’s none of your business.”  
Honda snorted.  
“Yeah, sure, refreshing my a-oh..my.._gods_!” His jaw fell right through the floor, as he shot up and, pointing at the other brunet, yelled:  
“You got _laid_!”  
Anzu spit her milk straight across the table, Mokuba coughed up a couple of flakes and Yuugi went beet red, as he choked on his fish. Yami’s eyes narrowed in suspicion, even as Anzu hollered:  
“No way! _Him_?!?” Honda had a smug, slightly deranged look on his face, when he continued:  
“Hell yes, Kaiba did the nasty last night, alright! I’d recognize that grin on anybody from ten miles away, there’s no denying that! So, who’s the lucky girl, huh?”  
A slight blush had started creeping up Kaiba’s neck, but never made it to his cheeks. Instead, the CEO took another sip from his coffee before giving Honda his best ‘drop-dead’ glance and declaring:  
“I can assure you Honda, that I have not been with anybody. Besides, I’d rather not discuss this in front of my little brother or at all, if it were true. Whitch it isn’t. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I got a meeting this morning.”  
“You’re right, it’s none of our business” agreed Yuugi, as he finished his meal.  
“Besides, we still have to check on Katsuya and get him ready for breakfast.”  
“Oh, I already took care of the blond, no need to worry. As I said, I had a very good sleep last night and so I thought I could take over washing duty for once,” he shot Yami a dirty look, which was replied with pure venom,  
“if you’re ok with that.”  
“Wow, thanks a lot Kaiba. Looks like getting laid does wonders to your attitude. Perhaps you might try it more often?” griped Honda, earning another death glare from Kaiba and a slap over the head from Anzu.

The days passed quickly, and by the end of the next week, each of the group had seen Katsuya smile at least once-save for Kaiba, that is, but no one was astonished about that.  
Shizuka, who could only visit for the weekends, had even caught a spark of the old Jounouchi in her brother’s eyes when Honda made a joke, and had cried happy tears all afternoon.  
Now, as she said good-bye to the others, she felt like she should stay. Something about Katsuya’s movements was..eerie. Strange. Desperate. For a moment, she wagered taking him home to her place, but rejected the idea. He could be better cared for here.  
Hugging him one more time, she whispered:  
“See you next week, nii-san. Take care” before picking up her bag and heading for the waiting limo, which would take her to the private Kaiba airport. Ever since the..accident, none of them liked to travel by train anymore.

“Wave good-bye, Jou, come on, wave good-bye” muttered Kaiba, who stood with his ward at the top of the stairs, looking down at Honda, who was about to leave. The blond complied, and his friend gave a happy grin, before calling:  
“See ya tomorrow, Katsuya. You too, Kaiba, and remember my advise: try to get laid more often!”  
He slipped out the door before Seto could reply, leaving the other brunet fuming.  
However, this one’s anger was short-lived as he let his fingers travel down Jou’s arms, noticing the goosebumps spreading like wildfire over this one’s pale skin.  
“Oh, is my puppy cold? Don’t worry, Jou, I’ll make you warm..make you hot..mine” whispered Kaiba-and drew back, when the strangest thing happened:  
Jounouchi tensed, shuddered, and, with great effort, let out a deep, shaky breath.  
“..e..”  
Seto gasped and, nudging the younger teen softly, pleaded:  
“I…couldn’t hear you, Jou..nouchi. What did you say?”  
Again, a shudder, but this time, the words were clearer:  
“..me..be..” Kaiba blinked.  
„Excuse me-?“  
„Leave...me..be...“ The voice sounded like something out of a cheap horror movie, but the seriousness of the tone was not to be toyed with. Yet, Seto wouldn’t back off that easy. Bending, he licked Jou’s neck, before explaining in a husked voice:  
“I’m sorry, I’m afraid, I can’t do that, puppy. You see, I took you in, I helped nursing you back to health, I claimed you, and now you’re mine. All mine, to do with as I please.”  
He could see the muscles in his jaw working, when Katsuya steeled himself for his next sentence:  
“..no..” Kaiba narrowed his eyes.  
“What do you mean, no? Of course you’re mine! Do you think, I spent all this time and money on you just so you can defy me? You owe me, mutt, I own you, and I’ll make sure as hell no one takes you away from me!”  
His whole torso vibrated as he flexed his fingers, before curling them into fists, and with a voice, none louder than a mumble, but strong and self-confident as ever, Katsuya rasped:  
“…never..be..yours…”  
Rage, pure, red-hot anger raced through Kaiba’s being, making his gaze blurry with hatred, evoking the need to destroy, hurt, kill something or somebody. His arm drew back and before he knew it, he had dealt out an uppercut, hitting Jou square on the cheek and throwing the blond off-balance.  
Who still stood at the top of the stairway.  
Without a sound, he stumbled, then rolled down the stairs, hitting his body over and over again on the hardwood steps.  
Kaiba stared in horror, before he shook off his trance and, racing down the stairs, reached for his cell phone, screaming:  
“Jounouchiii! Nooooo!”  
He had quick-dialed the number for the hospital and waited for somebody to pick up, when he heard an all too familiar gasp coming from the living room, but then, a click at the other end of the line drew his attention back to the matter at hand.

Anzu clasped her hands in front of her mouth, trying not to let another sound escape, save she shared Jou’s fate.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
One might come to the conclusion, I hated Jounouchi Katsuya. They couldn't be further from the truth...


	10. Twisting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And now for a rarity: Kawai Shizuka proving that she is a Jounouchi.

_10\. Twisting_

“..mild concussion, a dislocated shoulder and a cracked rib. Oh, and try to favor his left ankle, it’s a little sprained. Otherwise, I’d say, your young friend was rather lucky. How, did you say, did it happen again?” asked the surgeon of the ER, where both Kaiba brothers and the Yuugi gang were gathered around Jou’s bed.  
Seto drove one hand through his brown tresses, confessing:  
“I..I let him stand there, at the rail, because I remembered I had forgotten to advise my chauffeur to pick up Kikuchi-sensei the next day, and wanted to get my cell phone from my desk. I told Jounouchi to stay where he was and to hold on to the rail, which he did. When I returned, he-he wobbled, and then his..eyes rolled back in his head, and he fell down. I-I tried to catch him, but I was too slow. I-I failed him.”  
He lowered his head, bangs shielding his eyes.  
Mokuba took hold of his hand, even as Yuugi and Honda patted his shoulder and back reassuringly.  
Yami’s eyes would have sliced steel to chips, as he took in Kaiba’s attitude.  
And Anzu fought with the bile in her throat, as she listened to the CEO spin his lies.  
No words escaped her lips. But her mind was screaming:  
‘ He’s lying! He threw Katsuya down the stairs! He did it on purpose! He wanted to hurt him! But why? Why, kami, _why_?’

The scene, which took place in the ER’s waiting room was..ugly.  
Right after announcing the ambulance, Kaiba had phoned Shizuka, telling her to take the next cab to his private airport, where his helicopter would pick her up.  
She had only landed half an hour ago and made the driver violate about six traffic laws, including speeding and cutting priority. Seto’s sports car would be appearing on several radar photos, by the time morning came.  
She shot into the ER, where Seto, Mokuba and Honda aswell as Yuugi and Anzu were already waiting for her.  
Kaiba told her, what had happened(the ‘offical’ version), and excused himself for his sloppyness.  
That’s when Shizuka had literally exploded.  
“Sloppy? You call that _sloppy_? You stupid, careless snob! You could have killed my brother because of a stupid phonecall, do you realize that? Oh kami, if only I had listened to my heart and taken Katsuya with me when I went home, then at least he would be lying in a nice, warm bed instead of a surgery table!”  
Everybody was baffled at this outburst, seeing as Shizuka was usually the quieter of the Jounouchi siblings. Now, however, the fire in her eyes and her serious tone would have made her elder brother proud.  
Seto only stared flabber-ghasted, for a second he really had the feeling of looking into Katsuya’s eyes, and he drew back a little, even as Shizuka closed the distance between them.  
“I’m warning you, Seto Kaiba, one more slip-up, one more accident, and I’ll have my nii-san removed from your custody, permanently! I don’t care if it puts our entire family into poverty, but I will not leave my brother at your mercy, because you’re not taking your responsibility serious enough!”  
By now, Honda, Yuugi, Anzu, Mokuba and Yami stood there, slackjawed, as they heard the threats coming out of Shizuka’s mouth in such an angry manner.  
Kaiba, truth be told, was sweating cold.  
No! He couldn’t allow that to happen! He would not let them take away his puppy, not after all the trouble he had gone through to claim him. He would do anything to keep the mutt close to him, even if it meant not touching him anymore. The thought alone of having Jou taken from his reach made Kaiba almost physically sick.  
It was the hardest thing he ever did in his live, when he nodded and offered his hand, saying:  
“Agreed. If anything I could have avoided, should happen to Katsuya, I will have him brought to your home, or any other place you wish, immediately. I promise.”  
If the others hadn’t face-faulted before, they did it now. Even Yami’s eyes went larger than Yuugi’s normally were.  
Kaiba giving up without a fight? When did hell freeze over?  
If Shizuka was surprised, she didn’t show it, instead took Seto’s hand and shook it firmly.  
“Remember, you gave me your word. I_ will_ take my brother away from you, should anything else happen.”

Four hours later, they were allowed to take Katsuya back to the Kaiba mansion.  
Seto even organized an ambulance for the way home and rang up Kikichi-sensei, just to make sure.  
Once the blond was settled in his bed and had gotten a last check-up, the others finally relaxed enough to head homewards.  
Honda yawned, knowing he would probably fail the test deemed for this morning, and Yuugi was only barely awake, letting Yami take over his body to bring them both home safely, seeing as Kaiba’s chauffeur was off-duty.  
Anzu stayed behind to help Shizuka arrange the room Seto had offered the younger brunette, since she refused to leave her brother just yet.  
Saying good-bye to Shizuka, Anzu closed the door and headed for the hall, when Seto walked towards her after tucking his little brother into bed.  
Wordlessly, he guided her to the main entry, but she stopped several meters away from the door.  
Puzzled, Seto turned to look at her, and what he saw in her face, he didn’t like at all.  
Her blue eyes were narrowed, her face was a mask of pure hatred, and her voice was colder than icicles, when she hissed:  
“I don’t know what you got planned, Kaiba, but I know that you’re a liar.”  
“I am certain, I have no idea what you are talking about.”  
Anzu gave a sharp smile, and Seto thought, she looked more like a harpy than a girl.  
“I saw how you hit Katsuya. I stood right here, when you punched him in the face. I have no idea why, but I saw you hit him dead on. And then I heard, what you told the others at the hospital, and decided to ask you before I tell the others anything: why? Why did you have to hurt Katsuya, when he’s completely defenseless? He might have been a threat when he was up and about, but now? When he’s like this? You know what, Shizuka, Honda and Yami were right, we should have never trusted you to take care of Jou. The faster he get’s out of here, the better for him.”  
Seto folded his arms across his chest, smirking:  
“Even if what you said was true, it would still be my word against yours. Besides, I doubt anyone would believe a known babblemouth as you. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I would like to catch some sleep. It has been a long night.”  
Kaiba opened the door and Anzu took the hint, stepping outside, but turning on the stoop.  
“You need help, Kaiba. Really, you do.”  
“Good night Anzu”, he replied coldly, closing the door in her face.  
Sighing, Anzu started on her way home in the dawn of the early morning.

Gritting his teeth, Seto strode directly to his office.  
In his head, Anzu’s words and her hatred gaze tumbled over and over, making his stomach go sour and his fists shake in fury.  
And then Shizuka had treatened to take Jou away from him, something he simply wouldn’t, couldn’t accept.  
He had come awfully close to losing his object of desire today, and that upset him, deeply.  
There was only one way to find release now.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
I will let you guess what his release might be


	11. Shattering

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beware; the change of scene turns into a stacchato in this chapter. The reason I chose this wording reveals itself as you read.

_11.Shattering_

The faintest of rose and pink heralded the early morning, but the sun wouldn’t rise for another hour.  
Shivering, Anzu walked through the chilly morning air, cursing herself for leaving her coat at home.-

His black, slightly wrinkled shirt flew on the chair, as he opened a drawer of his desk and pulled out a wide, hooded black cloak with long, tight sleeves.  
Donning the garment, he ordered aloud:  
“ L.V.B, Opus 62, Corielan!”  
Then he stood there, raising his arms, as the first notes whispered across the office.-

Heavy steps behind her made the brunette frown.  
Throwing a cautious glance over her shoulder, she turned a corner.  
Odd, there was no one to be seen, although she swore, she could hear someone breathing.-

Elegant fingers flexed automatically, then the limbs of his right hand took hold of the imaginary baton.-

She had fallen into a slight jog trying to evade her persuader, but the faster she went, the closer he came.  
Just as she tried to duck into a larger road, a hand grabbed her hair and Anzu was pulled back into the quieter alley.-

Sweat formed on his brow, as Seto mentally conducted the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, his arms cutting the air accurately.-

She landed with her shoulder first and used her momentum to clumsily roll to her feet. Once up, Anzu turned tails to run, but a fist struck her cheek hard enough to make her cry out in pain and trip backwards into the wall.-

His blood was rushing through his veins, glaring at the cellos which had not been quite on cue, feeling the audience’s eyes rest on his person, as if it had been his fault.-

In his room, Mokuba shivered under his covers, hands pressed tightly against his ears. He hated this ouverture, it usualy meant that his brother was beyond furious and needed some way to vent his anger. Any minute now-

Luckily for her, the wooden heel had connected hard enough with the attacker’s groin to let her escape. But being hurt and panicked, Anzu headed for the wrong direction; instead of running towards the City center, she was racing down to the harbour and into her doom.-

Screaming, Kaiba grabbed a handfull of files from his desk and tossed them into the air, before hefting up his office chair and throwing it at the large double-winged balcony door, successfully shattering the glass.-

Mokuba flinched at the sound, if he started with the chair already this early in, there was no reasoning with him. Entering the office now would be tantamount to suicide.-

Her side was aching, her lungs burning, but she kept running, hoping to escape her persuer.-

Next was the heavy monitor; it crashed against the wall and exploded in an array of plastic shards and left a dent in the otherwise perfect surface of the blue-and-white tapestry. Seto’s rage was not yet stilled.-

Shizuka awoke with a start, startled by the loud noises emitting from Kaiba’s office.  
‘He really must feel bad about what happened to nii-san. Then again, he should.’  
Listening to Seto’s antics, she soon fell asleep again.-

Under his warm comforters, the raiven-haired younger Kaiba trembled with fear. Never had his brother been this angry, not even after the Battle City finals.-

She could see the police station from where she was standing, haunched over and drawing deep lungfulls of air, but before she could make more than two steps towards safety, a sharp pain exploded in her right hip, and Anzu screamed as she collapsed on the pavement, a large hand muffling her cry.-

A roar, a high, tearing sound, and off came the heavy velvet curtains, being turned into shreds in a matter of minutes. Blue eyes, which had almost turned black, stared unseeing at the damage, searching for something else to destroy.-

Anzu kicked and struggled, trying to wind out of the man’s steel-like grip, but nothing helped, as she was dragged into the dark, deserted alleys between the wrecked buildings.-

One hand wrapped safely in a piece of curtain cloth, Seto picked up a large shard of glass and started cutting lines into the expensive carpet, removing the small, golden ‘K’s one by one.-

She had been tossed onto a pile of rotten smelling, stiff blankets and tried to crawl away, but was being pulled back by her ankles. Her kidnapper sat on her legs and started cutting of her shorts.  
Anzu screamed, realizing what her tormentor was attempting to do.-

His fury had reached the peak, as Seto pulled drawer after drawer from the heavy oak desk, throwing their contents around the room before smashing each container repeatedly against the polished wooden surface, until it was reduced to mere splinters.-

Anzu cried in despair, as the large member trust into her without preparation, tearing her hymen and causing her tender flesh to bleed. Tears streamed down her cheeks, as she sobbed in pain and loss, trying to focus on her breathing instead.-

Amber eyes flew wide open in surprise, just to screw shut again in pain. They reopened, but the awareness was gone.-

Inside his wrecked bureau, Seto found nothing else to destroy, so he took a deep breath and, with a loud yell, threw himself against the walls, again and again, eager to tear down the whole building with his own body.-

And in another room, surrounded by plush animals and toys, a little boy with ebon locks cried bitter tears.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Seto's orchestra part was directly inspired by the final scene of _Amadeus_ by Milõs Foreman. F. Murray Abraham's performance is chilling and worthy of every single award it won him.  
Ironically, I chose Beethoven for this part, because it carries the atmosphere of the story as well as Seto's insanity better.


	12. Trembling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I have the inkling, all die-hard Seto fans are beginning to resent me...for good reason.

_12\. Trembling_

A rather disshelved looking Honda appeared at school a few minutes before the bell rang. Yuugi was already waiting for him at their usual spot, but Anzu was nowhere to be seen.  
“Sorry, I’m late, but I slept in” panted the brunet, before looking around and asking:  
“Anzu ain’t here yet?” Yuugi only shook his head.  
“No, actually I wanted to ask you if you’ve seen her. I tried to call her over her cell phone, but it’s always occupied.”  
“Odd,” frowned Honda, “but then again, maybe she decided to call in sick and is informing the teachers?”  
Yuugi’s face brightened up at that.  
“Hey, you’re probably right, plus, the cheerleaders have a rehearsal tomorrow, so she’s probably giving them advises, too.”  
Satisfied with that explanation, the two boys rushed for class.

“Good morning, nii-san, how are you?” cheered Shizuka, as she stepped into her brother’s room.  
Halfway to the bed, she froze in her tracks and dropped the yukata she carried. In a flash, she was at Katsuya’s side, who lay there, strung taut like a bow.  
“Kami, Katsuya, what’s wrong? Are you hurting? Where? Oh gods, if only you could talk!” The brunette sobbed in near hysterics, as she searched for the phone. Just as she was about to pick up the reciever, a strong hand shot forwards and grabbed her wrist. In mute shock, she stared at her brother, who lay there, eyes burning, focused on something in the distant, face covered in sweat, his whole body shivering.  
“n..zu..” Shizuka only just managed to lay down the reciever, before she sunk to her knees.  
“Ka-Katsuya-you spoke!” breathed the young girl, just to be interrupted by the blond’s whisper:  
“An..zu..help..An..n..zu..” The flicker in his eyes dimmed, and his body relaxed again.  
Puzzled, Shizuka stared at her brother, trying to comprehend, what had happened.

Two days later, the police rang again at the Kaiba mansion.  
Frowning, Seto listened to the officer telling him about the missing Mazaki Anzu. When the turn came to him to answer, Kaiba shook his head.  
“As you already reveaed, Sergeant, Mazaki-san left my home short before dawn, and I have not heard of or seen her yet. I admit, we did have a small argument before she left, which was fairly understandable, regarding my..carelessness, which caused Jounouchi-kun’s recent accident.”  
The officer nodded.  
“Yes, we checked that one too, and found out that you and young Jounouchi did not..click?”  
He shot Kaiba a quick glance, who remained absolutely motionless.  
“Which, of course, raises the question why you would take him into custody in the first place. And at your own home for that matter.”  
A sigh, perfectly balanced between annoyance and boredom, escaped the CEO’s lips, before he answered:  
“In all honesty, it was Mokuba who insisted on having Jounouchi-kun brought here. My little brother has taken a liking to Katsuya, and he can be rather..stubborn, if he has his mind set on something. Persistance runs in the family.”  
After a few more questions, the police officers left, leaving Seto to stare out his window.  
“So, what do you think? What does your instinct tell you?” asked the seargent his assistant. The younger man pondered the question a few seconds, then requested:  
“Just between you and me? Strictly inofficial?”  
His superior nodded. Frowning, the young man replied:  
“I’d say, Kaiba knows far more than he let’s us in on. If not for the fact that both his brother and Katsuya’s younger sister heard him rampaging in his office about the time Mazaki-san disappeared, I would even go so far as to accuse him of being directly involved with the girl’s missing.”  
“And, strictly inofficial of course, I would say, your instincts are right. But there is the indisputable fact, that Kaiba does have an alibi, and a good one for that.”  
He shook his head sadly.  
“Let’s just hope, young Mazaki is doing well, and that we can find her before it’s too late.”

Gritting her teeth, Anzu pushed the last of the heavy boxes under the shattered window.  
Her tormentor had left a couple of hours ago after repeatedly raping and beating her.  
Groaning, she used her right shoulder to coax the last of the empty containers next to the others, her left arm dangling useless at her side.  
She had tried escaping already four times, the first time only shortly after her imprisonment, once the following day, aswell as the previous nights. Her kidnapper caught her every time, and each time, her ‘punishment’ grew crueler.  
Yesterday she had almost made it, if only she would have taken a different turn, chosen a different road. But no, she had run smack into her kidnapper, who wasted no time in showing her, what he did with ‘disobeyant, snotty little girls’.  
Her arm was broken in at least two different places, and there was a huge bump on her spine. The wound in her left hip, where he had stabbed her while kidnapping her, was starting to heal, but had gotten infected and was continuously seeping pus.  
Huffing, Anzu rested for a few moments, pain shooting through her body, making her eyes fill with tears.  
‘I don’t give up! Because Jounouchi Katsuya never gives up!’  
The voice echoed in her mind, as if the blond were standing next to her, fueling her with his bravado and passion.  
A fierce, determinded smile crossed Anzu’s features.  
“Because he never gives up! You’re right, Jou, and neither will I! If there’s anything I’ve ever learned from you, then it’s to keep on fighting, never mind the odds!”  
With those words and new-found strength, Anzu fought her way out of her prison.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
Of course, it's not that easy. It never is.


	13. Breaking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some more bloodshed with a hint of gore..just for those of you who are squirmish.

_13\. Breaking_

Effortlessly crushing the pre-paid, disposable cell phone in his fist, Kaiba smiled triumphantly.  
Of all the things his stepfather had left him, this little aquaintance of his was one of the best treats.  
A single phone call, and his problems were solved.  
Settling back in his brand-new leather chair, he resumed his work.

The sun set behind the horizon, and she was still in hiding.  
She had been doing so all day, cautiously limping from building to building, hiding whenever she heard somebody come close, and not leaving her shelter, until she could be sure, the passer-by would not come back.  
Of course, this way she slowed down her escape a fair bit, but she needed time to give her tortured body the chance to restore itself.  
Come nighttime, Anzu was completely lost, the only thing she knew for sure, was that she wasn’t heading back to where she came from. Plus, this run-down appartment building was obviously frequently used by scoundrels and dealers, if the blankets and used needles were any indication. No way he would come looking for her here.

“..the search for the missing Mazaki Anzu continues on this, the fourth night since her disappearance. Police reported, that they may have traces leading to where she was last seen, but there are no official confirmations as of yet. As to the moment, family members and friends are leading the search teams, combing the entire town…”

“Aaanzuuu! Aaanzuu, where are youu?”  
“Anzuu, if you can hear us, give us a sign!”  
They had been searching for the past forty-six hours, ever since Anzu had been officially declared as missed, and slowly but surely, exhaustion caught up with them.  
Panting, Yuugi leaned heavily against a wall, driving a sleeved arm over his sweat-and tear-covered face. Honda came to stand next to him, his face weary and tired.  
“They’re calling off the volunteer search party for today, only the professionals are allowed to stay. Say, they don’t want anybody else to get lost.”  
Sniffing, Yuugi turned his purple gaze on the tall brunet, his face a mask of agonized worry.  
“We have to find her, Honda. We just have to.”  
“We will, Yuug’, I promise. We will find her.”  
Hooking the shorter boy under, he led him back to the group.

Blinking, Anzu woke, when a stray beam of sunlight caressed her eyelids.  
Until today she had never known, how great a gift a night of undisturbed, save sleep was.  
She yawned, and checked her surroundings carefully. Nobody was here, except of her, and she couldn’t hear anything suspicious either. Still, better safe than sorry, so she rose and snuck through the abandoned rooms, until she could be sure, she was alone.  
Only then she allowed herself the luxury of inspecting the scattered clothes and blankets more closely, until she found a piece of cloth wich seemed to be comparably clean. Using her teeth and right arm, she tore it into shape, until she could use it as a make-shift skirt. She would just have to do without her panties.

“Ok, folks, these are the two last squares of the city wich have still to be combed. So, unless the kidnapper brought Mazaki-san out of town the very first day or managed to smuggle her past our troups, she must be in this area. I want you to swarm out and search every single room, hall and corner, every space wich is big enough to hide a human in it. You will be going in groups of at least two to three people, no solo tours, understood? Ok, that’s all, now let’s find her! Go!”

Supporting herself with her right arm, Anzu trudged through the narrow alleys, her whole body trembling.  
Despite the refreshing sleep, she started to feel the lack of food and, mostly, water. Her head was spinning and the blood rushing through her ears swallowed almost every other sound around her.  
Still she knew, she would make it.

“Send me the trackers down to the old hangar-yeah, the one corner Harbour Road and Gekkyuu Way, yes, I think we found where he has been hidi-no, she’s gone. By the looks of it, I suppose she escaped through the window-yeah, send me a few armed men too, by the looks of it, this guy’s a real son-of-a-bitch! Yes, we’ll wait.”

Her head was smashed against the wall, bruising her cheek and temple, even as a sweaty palm was pressed against her lips.  
“Hya, sweetie, miss me?”  
She tried to shake her head in refuse, but the movement only made her vision blur. So she settled on glaring daggers at her tormentor.  
This one wrapped one arm around her waist and carried her into one of the near-by houses.  
Kicking the door shut behind him, he pressed Anzu against the adjunctant wall, even as he drew out his knife.  
“I must say, you’re really starting to piss me off, you little bitch! Nearly got away this time and the whole town’s on it’s feet searching for you.”  
Hope sparked up in Anzu’s blue eyes at those words, and she tried to struggle free. A sharp blow to her stomach however, knocked the wind out of her, literally.  
“Been chasing you down the whole night, and then I still had to evade the cops. Of course, since they’re not too smart, that was rather easy-unlike trying to find you. Luckily, I took precautions for exactly this case.”  
He licked across the nick on her cheek, efficiently breaking the skin.  
“You got a tracker imbedded, y’ know.”  
Grinning, he pushed his index finger into the wound on her hip, tearing the cut open and making it bleed anew. Anzu gave a strange sound, half scream, half gurgle, when the kidnapper wiggled his finger inside the infected flesh. Then he stuck the pus- and blood-covered limb into his mouth, devouring the infectious material with delight.  
If she could have, Anzu would have thrown up right there and then, but all she managed were a few dry heaves.  
“Tasty. Let’s see, if the rest of you is just as delicious.”  
Her blouse was ripped open, her right breast squeezed painfully and then, in one swift move, her nipple was cut off.  
She howled, as pain exploded in her chest, and fell to her knees, clutching the bleeding mound tight.

“Hey, Yuug’, you heard that?” asked Honda. Yuugi shook his head.  
“No, I didn’t hear a thing, what did it sound like?”  
Honda frowned.  
“I..I dunno. Like..a cry-or bending metal. Probably only a stray cat.”

Her tormentor popped the small nub into his mouth, suckled a little on it and then spit it out. Turning his attention back to Anzu, he pushed the crying girl on her back and grabbed her left arm.  
“I told you what would happen, if you ran again, but no, you couldn’t listen, now could you?”  
Anzu only sobbed, when she felt her arm being twisted and then lightning, a blinding, glowing rod of pain shot through her limb, as the flesh was cut neatly apart, the blade slipping through the already shattered bone.

Yuugi and Honda stared at each other in shock.  
“Anzu!”  
The two boys raced in direction of where the scream had come from.

“Oww, did that hurt? Here, let me lend you a hand!”  
Anzu rolled on the floor, tears flowing freely, as did blood. Her punisher cackled.  
“Hey, I know something to cheer you up! How about some fingerplay, huh?”  
Before she had time to comprehend the meaning behind those words, her wannabe-skirt was pushed up, and then she felt her own fingers entering her pussy, moving in and out of her, inbetween being twisted in the most impossible positions.  
“I knew, that would shut you up. You see, I know what women wa-!”  
“Anzuu, where are you? Are you there?”  
“Say something, Anzu! We’re here to save you!”

Honda! Yuugi!  
Blue eyes snapped wide open in relief.  
They had found her! She was going to be saved!  
Cursing, the kidnapper tossed her severed limb away, even as he tried to reach for his discarded knife.  
Anzu used his split-second of distraction to push him off her and jump to her feet. Wobbling, she headed for the door, yelling:  
“Yuuuugi! Honda! In here! Help me, I’m in here! Heelp!”  
“Oh no, you won’t!” snarled her tormentor, as he grabbed her hair and twisted her around to face him. Anzu used her momentum to swing her right arm up and into the attacker’s face, even as this one pressed his knife against her throat.  
The blade slid past flesh, muscles and cartilage with a single, whispering cut, leaving the girl bare of speech and breath.  
Her kidnapper cursed anew, as he run to the opposite side of the building, probably making his escape through one of the windows or over the roofs.  
The last thing Mazaki Anzu saw, were the silhouettes of Yuugi and Honda, standing in the frame of the forced open door.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
Honesly, it was bound to happen. Eventually one of Yuugi-tachi had to die.


	14. Giving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When I first posted this chapter, I was stunned at how many people disliked Anzu. Let's see if she has some fans here

_14\. Giving_

Rubbing his tired eyes, the surgeon exited the ER scrub room, despising his profession with a vengeance in moments like these.  
In the waiting room, the Mazaki girl’s family and friends were gathered, anxiously waiting for the outcome of the operation he had just finished.  
Taking one last, deep breath, he pushed open the double-winged door and asked:  
“Mazaki-san?”  
Five pairs of eyes shot in his direction, and the doctor cringed inwardly. He hated, what he had to do next.  
Anzu’s mother rose, taking a few, tentative steps towards him.  
“Sensei, is she-“  
He led her back to her seat, before sighing and answering:  
“Anzu is stable-at the moment. If she survives the next forty-eight hours, chances are good, she will recover.”  
The surgeon held up his hand to stop any oncoming questions or sighs of relief.  
“We were able to-restore the severed organ and limb and, if she survives, there is a eighty-six percent probability, that she will be able to use both with a few minor restrictions. However, we could do nothing about her vocal chords.”  
The surgeon locked eyes with Anzu’s parents.  
“I..I am sorry, but your daughter will have to learn to live without voice. She will be mute for the rest of her life.”

Yami stood at his usual place behind the large velvet drapers in Jou’s room, guarding the blond.  
Ever since Koichi-san had been killed, he had been keeping vigil over his friend.  
The problem was, that this way of guarding was rather limited and very tireing for both him and Yuugi.  
He needed his hikari in a semi-aware state, best short before falling asleep or right after awakening, when the body’s pull on his spirit was not quite as strong but Yuugi could still concentrate enough to mentally keep his darker side in Jou’s room.  
As soon as the short boy fell asleep completely, his sub-counciousness took over and Yami was pulled back into his body, or, occasionally, into Yuugi’s dreams(this could be rather interesting, as Yami found out, Yuugi’s dreams about a particular girl certainly clashed with the‘innocent’aura his hikari radiated).  
Yami cursed in Egyptian, as he felt his presence flickering in and out of reality.  
‘Yuugi! Wake up!’ he demanded via their mental link  
‘I’m up, I’m up!’ came the boy’s flustered reply, making the pharao smile despite himself.  
His light was holding up rather well, considering the horrific week he had behind him:  
First, his girlfriend had been kidnapped, then the endless search, the agonizing fear and growing despair, the never wavering hope, only to find his secret crush beaten and maimed, robbed of her innocence and voice.  
And yet, somehow, every night he still found the strength to send Yami over to Jou, just to make sure, his best friend was doing well.  
But even the most powerful of men sometime grow weak, and, despite his considerable strength, Yuugi was still a boy.  
Yami could feel his hikari struggling with sleep, trying to fight it, but his body was simply too burnt out to follow its owner’s lead and easily gave in to nature’s call.  
Just as the pharao felt his spirit being torn from Katsuya’s dorm, he saw the door quietly, cautiously, swing open.  
Purple eyes widened in alarm, even as Yami thought:  
‘No! Not now! Yuugi, stay awake, stay-‘

“Non confundar in aeternum, peccavi nimis, cogitatione, verbo et opere.*”  
Seto smirked, as he entered his puppy’s room, lust and triumph shining in his cold blue eyes.  
Locking the door firmly behind him, he sauntered towards the bed, removing his clothes on the way.  
He crawled on the bed and started pulling down the deep blue comforter with his teeth, inbetween pausing to rub himself against Jou’s blanketed body, letting the younger teen feel his arousal.  
“Guess what, mutt. They found your friend Anzu-yes, the little bimbo has been retrieved, and alive, too! Given, she still is unconcious and will probaly not be able to talk for the rest of her live, but then, it’s not like she needed that annoying, nasal whine of hers for becoming a dancer, ne? But enough of those sad, trivial tales, let us get back the matter at hand.”  
With a single, fluid motion Seto straddled Jou’s hips, launched forwards to capture the blond’s lips-and stopped mid-tracks.  
Hatred.  
Pure, unadulterated, raging hatred burned in Katsuya’s brown eyes, overwhelming and devouring the CEO’s lust with it’s all-consuming flames. Kaiba shot up and was off his victim before he even knew it. Staring at the motionless blond, he panted:  
“Pu-pup? Jou?”  
The brown orbs didn’t follow him, and Seto relaxed a little. Still, he didn’t feel like having sex tonight, so instead, he uncovered the gorgeous body laying before him and, letting his gaze travel up and down Jou’s lean form, jerked off to the beautiful sight.  
He came with a low cry, almost a snarl, spraying his semen all over the blond’s face and chest.  
It took Kaiba a few moments to regain his breath, before he stepped closer to the bed and, bending down, licked up every single drop of his own seed without swallowing. Once Jou was cleaned to his satisfaction, Seto pressed his lips upon Katsuya’s, forced his tongue past this one’s teeth and let the savored cum and saliva dribble into Jou’s mouth.  
With a final lick, Seto released his puppy, before whispering into his ear:  
”Just a little ambrosia to go with your nectar-colored eyes. Good night, mutt.”  
As the door clicked closed, the entire bed started to shake, gently first, then harder and faster, in sync with the trembling body in it.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
*Let me not be damned for eternity, for I have sinned, in thought, in word and deed.


	15. Splitting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So, I didn't kill off Anzu. Do not worry, though, for death still looms above our little ragtag group of friends
> 
> *are Jounouchi's thoughts

_15\. Splitting_

She kept drifting in and out of conciousness, never enough to realize her surroundings or recognize the voices around her, but she knew one thing: that she was safe.  
Her ordeal was finally over.  
Little did Anzu know, that her real trial was yet to come.

Honda yawned exhausted.  
Ever since they had found Anzu, Yuugi spent almost every free minute at the hospital, only just showing up in time to take over his shift at Jou’s side.  
What didn’t surprise Honda, it was more than obvious his short friend had a crush on the brunette girl.  
Still, it was tireing, having to bathe Katsuya all by himself and wait for-  
“Hon..da..”  
The brunet youth jerked away from his friend and only just managed to catch him before the blond fell backwards and hit his head on the rim of the bathtub.  
Chestnut orbs locked onto amber ones, and Honda gasped anew.  
Jou was staring straight at him!  
“Hey man, you ok? You scared me half to death there. Still, I’m gla-“  
One foam-covered arm shot forwards and grabbed the front of his short in a death grip.  
The blond youth’s whole body shook with effort, when he pulled Honda closer and whispered in his ear:  
“care..ful..”  
With a sigh, all tension left Jou’s body, and he sunk back, exhausted, eyes empty and unfocused.

*It was getting harder and harder to resist the the pull of the void. He fought to cling to his conciousness, to regain control of his life, but every time Kaiba..used him, he felt it that easier to slip into the sweet oblivion the eye offered.  
Among other things.  
He had come to the conclusion, that the orb also offered him some kind of clairvoyance or sixth sense.  
Jou had had a bad feeling, when they had brought him back from the hospital, and really, only a few hours later, his insides had churned, when pain and terror hit him without warning.  
And somehow, in a way he couldn’t explain, he had known it was Anzu.  
And now, that same, dreadful foreboding radiated off his best friend, Honda.*

She was awake and aware, at least most of the time.  
Anzu still felt incredibly tired, her whole body seemed to be one big, throbbing wound and her throath was sore, but at least now she could make out the faces and names of the people.  
Her parents came to see her every day as did Yuugi, Honda visited at least four times a week and Shizuka as often as possible. Otogi had also dropped by a few times after he had heard what had happened to both her and Jou(he had been overseas the past six months), and even Mokuba had managed to drop in twice.  
And although it could have only been a dream, Anzu had the feeling, even Kaiba had came once, stealthily, in the night when all was quiet. She had not seen him, but had felt that cold, dissecting gaze of his linger on her, but when she had woken, she had been alone.  
Big tears rolled out of Anzu’s blue eyes when she recalled the doctor informing her about the loss of her voice and the condition of her left arm. Her heart almost broke, when she realized that she would be restricted to communicate by sign language and never be able to sing, talk or laugh aloud again for as long as she lived.  
And considering the damage inflicted on her arm, she highly doubted, any dance academy would accept her.  
With a silent sob, Anzu let her head plop onto the soft cushion and cried herself to sleep…

Yami had blocked the mental connection with Yuugi, not wanting to let his hikari feel the rage and hatred burning in his soul.  
Kaiba had confirmed and surpassed every single bad assumption the pharao had about him.  
Momentarily, the young CEO flipped Jou’s helpless body over on his stomach, then rammed his swollen cock anew into the blond’s rectum, pistoning in and out of the tight opening, sweating and cursing all the way.  
The spirit churned with anger and disgust, when he saw pain and fury flicker across Jou’s serene face, and moved towards the bed in order to save his friend.  
However, his actions were stopped by none other than Katsuya, who locked his golden orbs with Yami’s purple ones.  
The message, though unspoken, was clear:  
Stay away.  
Yami nodded, reluctantly, before he let himself be pulled back to Yugi.  
“Well?” questioned his hikari anxiously, more asleep than awake. The pharao only shook his head.  
“Rest. We will deal with it tomorrow.”  
Yuugi gave a cautious glance, but before he could object, tiredness overwhelmed him.  
He yawned and was asleep, before his head met the pillow.  
Yami smiled tenderly, then furrowed his brow in renewed concern and disgust.  
Kaiba was in for an unpleasant surprise come morning.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
Yes, Yami is acting OOC here, but for good reason.


	16. Circling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And yet, the plot twists about again

_16\. Circling_

Seto was indeed more than mildly surprised, when he entered Jou’s room the next morning and found the blond already washed and halfway dressed sitting on his bed, Yuugi next to him.  
Frowning, the CEO closed the door behind him and crossed his arms, asking:  
“What do you think you’re doing there, Muutou?”  
Said one calmly finished pulling a sweater over Jou’s head, before he replied:  
“It’s my turn to get Katsuya ready for the day. Besides, I wanted to talk to you.”  
A short flicker of light, a shift in the air, and Yami added:  
“Rather, _I_ have to talk to you. Seriously.”  
The pharao rose from the bed, and suddenly the room seemed to grow smaller. Kaiba couldn’t help the small tug of fear in his heart, although his face gave away nothing.  
Yami stopped short before his rival, purple orbs narrow and sharp.  
“I know that you are raping Jou, have been for quite a while now, and I want you to stop it, immediately.”  
He really thought, Seto was going to have a heart attack, what with his blue eyes almost popping out of their sockets, the blood draining from his face like a falling curtain and his jaw dropping lifeless to his chest.  
Then his hands balled into fists and, trembling with rage, Kaiba spat:  
“How-dare you accuse me of something so-utterly **despicable**?!? I am neither a rapist nor a queer, and even if I were, I’d rather choose celibacy over this poor, catatonic mutt!”  
“Don’t you dare to _ever_ use that tone with me again, Kaiba! Not after what you have done!”  
All of a sudden, they were surrounded by darkness and a look at Yami confirmed Seto’s suspicions:  
The third eye was aglow on the pharao’s forehead, pupils almost completely dilated as his hair appeared to have a life of itself, wildly flapping around his head.  
“You have no idea how lucky you are, Kaiba Seto! If not for the well-being of my friend, I would have cast you in the Shadow Realm the very moment I found out what you are doing to Jounouchi! But I warn you, if you ever lay hands on Katsuya again, you will join the other souls in eternal damnation!”  
Several moments, Kaiba felt the pull at his soul, and then the Shadow Realm disappeared. Yami stood there, sneering:  
“For the moment, I will keep this between you and me, not even Yuugi will know about it. But if you should slip up,”  
he stood almost nose to nose with the taller teen,  
“I am going to send your mind and soul to the Shadow Realm and take over both your body and Kaiba Corp.! Never forget that I’m but a spirit without body and yours would do just fine for me. At least that way neither Jou nor Mokuba would be abandoned.”  
With that, Yami pushed past Seto, throwing the door closed with a loud bang.  
The brunet slumped against the door, his legs refusing to work properly, his whole body trembling with the shock.  
After several minutes, he managed to pry himself from the wooden surface and stumbled over to Jou, who still sat on the edge of his bed. Letting himself fall on the soft matress, Seto combed his fingers through the mop of thick, blond tresses, caressed Jou’s soft skin and finally gave him a tender kiss.  
“I’m so sorry, puppy, but this will be the last time for a long while until we can be together again. I..need to take care of some things first, but don’t worry, though,” he pressed his cheek against Katsuya’s, his voice deep and husky,  
“I will make you mine again soon enough, just you wait, pup.”  
A last flicker of the tongue, another bruising kiss, and Kaiba was gone.

“So, she’s already up and about, ne?” asked Honda, as he walked home with Yuugi.  
Several weeks had passed, Kaiba was on a business trip and Anzu was slowly, but surely, recovering. She was out of the wheel chair and could flex the fingers of her left arm, very much to everybody’s surprise and relief.  
Yuugi had visited her before joining Honda in bathing and feeding Jou and had been overtaken with joy, when she walked up to him as she returned from PR.  
Though it was obvious she was still a far way from actual recovery, her eyes _did_ sparkle, when he told her about the ‘ice cream incident’, which had involved Honda, Mokuba, an airborne bottle of strawberry sirop and a five liter package of molten ‘chocolate mint crisp’.  
“I told you not to tell her about that! Didn’t I tell you, _not_ to tell her that? I _told_ you not to tell her about that!” complained Honda, causing Yuugi to chuckle.  
“Hey, everybody found it funny, even Mokuba. And Anzu actually laughed tears, when I described to her how the sirop ran down the collar of your shirt, or how Moki bounced around when the ice cream found its way into his pants, although I have no idea how he managed _that_!”  
Honda paused his step, drove one hand over his face and moaned.  
“Aww, I thought I was going to die when the bottle got stuck in my hair. I’m never going near sirop again in my life.”  
Yuugi, who had continued walking, laughed aloud at the memory, when he heard a faint thud behind him. Grinning, he asked over his shoulder:  
“Hey Honda, what happened? You can’t possibly be mad at me, I mean, it wasn’t my fau-”  
Amethyst eyes widened in horror, when he saw his friend laying sprawled on the pavement, his attacker searching through his pockets, a basball bat in one hand.  
Just as Yuugi overcame his initial shock, Honda’s robber pulled out the teen’s cell phone and, advancing towards the short boy, dialed a number.  
“Hon..da?” asked Yuugi concerned, then louder ”Who-who are you?”

“Domino City Emergency Services, how may I hel-“  
“No-ack-please, stop, no, no-ugh-Honda-help, someo-ow, agh-no, please-stoaaaaAAAAAAIIEEEGGHHH-!!!”  
“Sir? Sir! Kuso!” the lady on the line cursed, as she turned a couple of switches, then grabbed a micro and shouted:  
“Number eleven! Number eleven, come in!” A faint crackle, then:  
“Here’s eleven, what’s up, Mariko?” came a male voice through the speaker.  
“Listen Shinosuke, I just got a call, sounds like a boy’s getting beaten up seriously by someone named Honda!”  
“Got it, any idea, where?”  
“Nope, gomen, but sounded like a cell phone to me.”  
“Well, ain’t that just great,” mumbled Shinosuke,” remember to send in the paramedics. Eleven over and out.”

Groaning, Honda pressed the package of ice against the back of his head.  
He was seated in the interrogation room, the seargent, who handled both Koichi’s and Anzu’s cases, opposite of him.  
“Feeling better, Honda-kun?” asked the elder man, and the brunet attempted to nod, only to grimace in agony.  
“Hai, at least now I no longer feel like throwing up.”  
He gave a small grin, which was replied by the police officer. However, the smile was quickly replaced by a frown.  
“Now, explain to me again; how come Yuugi was beaten into a pulp and you got away with a simple bump?”  
Sighing, Honda retold his story for the –what fifth?eight?-time:  
“We were walking home together, Yuugi told me how Anzu was doing better and made fun of me and Mokuba having a food fight. I stopped, because I heard footsteps. I turned around, saw a shadow, and then-bang.”  
”Bang?” questioned the seargent. Honda nodded, flinched and clutched his head in renewed pain.  
“Bang. I saw fireworks, and then the lights went out. I woke up, when the co-o-police cuffed and dragged me to their car.”  
Pausing a moment, he let his eyes roam his surroundings, before letting them rest on his vis-à-vis.  
“So, how’s Yuugi?” he asked. Grey eyes narrowed in suspicion.  
“Funny you would ask that, considering you’re the prime suspect.”  
“What?!?”  
yelled the teen-just to press his palms against his temples, trying to stop what felt like a swarm of angry hornets gone astray in his skull. The seargent pulled him down on his seat, pressing the ice bag against the bump on his head.  
“Easy there, Hiroto, you got a mild concussion. Not like your friend Yuugi, who’s standing at heaven’s gate.”  
Brown eyes widened in fear and denial.  
“No. No it, it can’t be, Yuugi, he-he’s not dead, he can’t be! I-I mean, we were just joking the other minute, he-he can’t be dead! That’s a lie, a damn lie! You’re lieing, he’s not dead, Yuugi’s not dead-!”  
“Shut up!” demanded the seargent, as he clamped a large hand over the teen's mouth, who continued rambling.  
“He’s not dead, at least not yet. We hope he’ll survive, but the doctor’s arent too optimistic. Basically every single bone in his body has been shattered and he lost a lot of blood. They’re trying to fix him together, even as we speak. Depending on the outcome, you’re either going to jail for felonious assault or murder one. We already informed your parents, they know you’re here and, more or less, what have happened.”  
He removed his hand, and Honda remained frozen in his pose for several minutes. Finally, he cleared his throat and asked:  
“But-but why me? I-I’m a victim, too, I mean, I was knocked out.”  
The seargent leaned back in his chair, causing the old furniture to give a protesting squeak.  
“When the police arrived, they found young Muutou in a pool of his own blood and you lying next to him, the baseball bat in one hand. We checked it for fingerprints, and so far only came up with yours. Nobody else’s.”  
Grey held chestnut.  
“As I said, prime suspect. You can make one phone call. Use it wisely.”

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
..care..ful...


	17. Undoing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A curt intermission, before we go back to the main story...

_17\. Undoing_

Kaiba leaned back in his chair, propped his legs on the cushioned footrest and closed his eyes.  
He tried to relax before the next meeting, when a soft, timid voice asked:  
“Mr. Kaiba?”  
Blue met blue, as the stewardess smiled down at him, phone in one hand.  
“You have a call from a Mr. Hiroto Honda from Japan, Domino City more precisely. Would you like to talk to him, or-?”  
Puzzled, Seto snatched the phone from her and growled:  
“Kaiba”.  
“Kaiba, man, you have no idea how glad I am to hear you! Listen, uh, the reason I’m calling is, well-I’m in jail and I need you to..book me a laywer? Bail me out?”  
Seto rose one eyebrow.  
“Nani? Arrested? What for? The ridiculous hairdo you’re sporting?”  
“Don’t screw with me Kaiba, I’m drop dead serious!” shouted Honda into the speaker, before dropping his voice to a more reasonable volume and continuing:  
“Last night somebody attacked Yugi and me. They knocked me unconcious and beat up Yuugi real bad.”  
There was a short pause, and Seto could actually hear Honda fighting with the tears.  
“They-the doctors think, he’s not gonna make it.”

Anzu stood over Yuugi’s prone body, bitter pearls dripping from her blue eyes.  
She couldn’t believe it.  
Just when she was about to recover and had finally made up her mind to tell the shorter boy the truth, he was taken away from her.  
‘No!’ Anzu scolded herself, ‘he’s not gone! He will make it! I know it! Yuugi always wins-especially, when Yami’s there to help him.’  
She rose her left arm, a bitter smile grazing her lips. Somehow, she still couldn’t believe it that she could use her fingers again. Gently running them over Yuugi’s bandaged forehead, she bent down and, moving her lips towards his ear, whispered mutely:  
“Aishteru, Muutou Yuugi, aishteru. And I will always wait for you, never mind how long it takes.”  
She brushed his lips in a tender kiss, before wiping another stray tear away and exiting the room.  
Mere seconds later, there was a tiny peak in the monitor’s reading.

Cursing, Kaiba stood at the check-in at Vancouver’s YVR airport. Due to heavy weather and even heavier traffic he was restricted to use public airlines, because both Tokyo Narita and his private airport were blocked off.  
His cell phone kept ringing non-stop, because his attorneys and counselours were calling off meeting after meeting, which suited him just fine.  
He had more important matters to deal with.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°


	18. Considering

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> From here onwards, the story will twist itself into an abyss of sadness and pain. Do read accordingly.

_18\. Considering_

Banging his fist in frustration against the wall for the ump-teenth time, Honda cursed himself for letting down both his guard and his friends.  
Jou had even told him to be careful, and because he hadn’t listened, Yuugi was now lying in a hospital, fighting for his life.  
And Kaiba, the only one who could help him in this situation, was stuck on a Canadian airport, because-  
“Honda Hiroto? Rise and shine, you’re free to leave.”  
The brunet rose his head, staring in disbelief at the seargent. The elder man nodded.  
“You’re free, evidence has proven you guiltless. We called your parents, they’re waiting for you in the lobby.”  
Honda frowned as he made his way out of the cell.  
“I told you it wasn’t me, and you didn’t believe me. So, what made you change your minds?”  
Grey eyebrows knitted together.  
“Your fingerprints. The investigation revealed, that there was only one set of fingerprints on the bat, there should have been multiple prints from both hands and not only your right one. There is no possible way to do that amount of damage to a body single-handedly. Even if you would have brought up the strength for a lethal blow, the force of the impact would have knocked the bat out of your hand. Besides, your fingerpints were clear and outlined, which they wouldn’t have been, if you would have wielded the weapon, because the sweat and friction would have smudged them.”  
Honda hmped in understanding, and then his face lit up, as he saw the worried faces of his parents waiting for him.  
He ran through the door, crushing both of them in a bear hug, tears escasping the corners of his eyes.  
The seargent followed and smiled, before he said:  
“You can take your son home now, Honda-san. Please make sure he doesn’t leave town just yet, as the investigation is not yet concluded. Oh, and Hiroto?”  
The boy looked at the seargent quizzically.  
“Remember to keep your back clear.”  
Honda nodded slowly.

“Now boarding is the flight JAL 487 to Los Angeles, LAX, all passengers aboard please. All passengers for flight 487 to-“  
Kansai International Airport was swarming with people as Kaiba strode towards the exit, where his limousine was waiting for him.  
Luckily, his plane had landed on schedule, and without having to overcome the distance Tokyo-Osaka, he would be home within an hour, even less, since it was somewhat past midnight and traffic would most probably be rather low.

Honda stared unseeing out the window of the car, thoughts tumbling like grains of rice through his mind.  
Finally, his father couldn’t take the silence any longer and asked:  
“So, I suppose you want to get home as fast as possible, right?”  
His son shook his head.  
“Iie, take me to the hospital first. I-I need to see Yuugi.”  
The vehicle took a turn to the left, even as his mother reached out and took Honda’s hand, squeezing it in reassurance.  
The brunet gave a smile, he didn’t really felt.

Stepping into the silent house, Seto removed his coat and shoes and then hurried up the stairs to Jou’s dorm as fast as his long legs would carry him, but halfways changed directions and headed for Mokuba’s room.  
Quietly, as to not wake his little brother up, he opened the door and snuck over to the raven-haired boy, who was fast asleep.  
Kaiba smiled, as he gently ran a hand through his brother’s wild tresses, and whispered:  
“Good night, otouto, and sleep well.”  
As an afterthought, he added:  
“I love you, Mokuba.”

He hated this place, hospitals in general and this particular one with a vengeance.  
Pausing before the door to the ICU, he took a deep breath and knocked softly. Moments passed, and then a tired looking nurse peeked out.  
“Yes?”  
“Go-gomen nasai, I-I have come to see Yuugi Muutou, I-I’m-“  
“It’s ok, Honda, come in” said a familiar, raspy voice. The nurse looked back over her shoulder, then took a step back and let the tall boy in.  
This one mumbled a silent thanks, then turned towards the speaker.  
“Kon-ban wa, Muutou-san. How-how are you?”  
Yuugi’s grandfather shrugged, trying to keep his face straight and failing miserably.  
“He-I-kami, who would do something like this to my boy? He’s always so nice and kind and never hurt anybody, and now-now…”  
Sobs escaped the old man, and Honda found himself holding the owner of the Kame Game Shop in a tight embrace, gently rocking him back and forth. Finally, Sugoroku let go of him and, patting the teen’s shoulder, said:  
“I..I let you talk to him. I’ll be back in a few minutes, I-I just need a moment to myself.”  
Honda looked after the old man leaving, before turning to the bed and for the first time setting his gaze on Yuugi. He averted his eyes quickly, gulped, and forced himself to look back at the frail body of his friend.  
Yuugi had been..mutilated.  
There was no other word to describe it. Several strands of hair had been cut off, stitched gashes adorning the scalp where spiked tri-colored tresses had been.  
His face, arms and torso, what he could see past the bandages, were freckled with bruises, both eyes were swollen shut, his lips, as far as he could make them out through the breathing mask, were busted, and his left shoulder had obviously been dis-and relocated.  
‘Almost like Anzu’ thought Honda, as he let his eyes roam over the blanketed legs of the boy.  
A quick peek under the comforter proved him right. Both legs had been broken and casted.  
“Terrible, isn’t it? That someone could go and do something so..brutal to a person as sweet and innocent as my hikari.”  
Sighing, Yami sat down on the bed, gently picking up and caressing one of Yuugi’s smaller hands.  
The pharao’s eyes were puffy and blood-shot, his whole appearance worn out and tired.  
Honda cleared his throat.  
“I’m sure, he’s going to make it-“  
“No, he will not. Oh, he _is_ fighting, with every ounce of his being, but he’s slipping away more and more, even as we speak. Soon, he will..perish. And when he does, so will I.”

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
Do not complain. You were warned ahead.


	19. Breathing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And thus, pain comes in many forms and on its heel..gore.

_19\. Breathing_

He had changed directions yet again, entered his darkened office and closed the door behind him.  
Without looking, he pulled out a secret drawer from his desk, picked up a small cell phone and hit the speed-dial.  
“Moshi, moshi?”  
“You fucking, incompetent idiot! What have you done?” shouted Kaiba.  
“Exactly what you told me to. I took care of your problem.”  
“Wrong. You caused me a whole truckload of problems with that thoughtless act. I told you to teach Yuugi a lesson, not kill him.”  
“As far as I remember, you didn’t wanted him to talk, and he won’t. I made sure-“  
“What you surely did was draw the police’s attention right back to my person and company. I-“  
He noticed a movement and, turning his head, found the door slightly ajar.  
Kaiba frowned, then spoke into the phone:  
“Hold on. I’ll call you back.”

“What do you mean by that? How come?”  
Yami smiled, a sad, defeated look in his purple eyes.  
“I am only a spirit, a soul without a body. I share Yuugi’s body, and while he can live without me, I will cease to exist without him because I have no physical presence. And while I could just return into the Millenium Puzzle and wait another five-thousand years for another host, I would rather join my hikari in eternity.”  
The pharao rested his forehead against Yuugi’s, even as the door opened and in stepped Anzu, Muutou-san and-  
“Shizuka?” whispered Honda incredulous. The dove-eyed younger girl nodded.  
“Hai. I-I heard, what had happened, and came as fast as I could. I-I know, that my brother would have wanted to come, so..”  
She trailed off, when she saw Yuugi laying on the bed, Yami seated next to him, and the dying boy’s condition.  
“Kami, no, please, Yuugi..”  
Tears pooled out of her eyes, even as Honda supported and led her to the bed.

Kaiba made his way down the silent halls of his mansion, searching every single corner and shadow for a possible intruder. When he rounded the corner towards Jou’s room, he felt the hairs on his neck stand straight up.  
The door was open, gently swinging back and forth with the cold breeze emitting from his koinu’s dorm.  
Forcing himself to remain calm, the brunet snuck towards the opened door, took hold of the knob-and swung the door open with a forceful shove.  
His heart nearly stopped, when he took in the empty bed, abandoned room and wide open balcony window.  
‘No!’ his mind screamed, as he threw all caution overboard and all but ran inside, softly calling:  
“ Puppy! Pup? Jou? Where are you? Jouno-“  
Something cold, smooth circled his throat, cutting off his words and air, and choked him. He managed to slip his fingers underneath what he thought was a cord, but before he could remove it, he was hurled around and smashed against a wall.

There was a soft rap at the door, and the nurse opened to let in Ryuji Otogi. The black-haired dice master nodded a greeting as he stepped closer and explained:  
“I-I tried to reach Yuugi, but no one took the phone, Kaiba’s abroad and when Honda’s parents told me you were here, well, I…”  
He trailed off, at a loss of words when he saw Yuugi.

Coughing, Kaiba tried to regain his breath, when he heard the door being shut and locked. He rose his head and received a kick in the chest as reward, snapping a rib. Grunting, Kaiba rolled on his back and pushed his feet upwards, trying to kick off his attacker-and froze, when he recognized the figure looming over him.  
“Pu-ppy?”  
Jou didn’t move, didn’t flinch, only stared at him.  
And then a broad, hungry grin appeared on the blond’s face.

They took turns in talking to him, and momentarily Shizuka reflected on how she had first met Yuugi, when he had fought her possessed brother.

Kaiba screamed, as the blade drove into his leg, and tried for a uppercut at Katsuya’s jaw. The blond blocked the hit and stomped on Kaiba’s exposed abdomen, knocking the wind out of him.  
Straddling the CEO’s waist, Jou pulled him up at his hairs, even as he drew the large meat knife out of Kaiba’s thigh.  
“Have you ever thought about how it must have been for Koichi-san to loose his eyes?” purred Jou.  
Seto bucked in panic, trying to shake off his obviously mad puppy, just to have his left hand pinned to the floor for the effort.  
He screamed again and rose his other arm to punch Jou, but this one reacted swiftly.  
He grabbed Kaiba’s arm, rose and moved beside the elder teen in one swift movement, then twisted the limb and broke it by bending it over his knee.  
A howl was forced out of Seto’s throat.

“..you caught that jellyfish in your bucket by accident and thought it was Ramen and tried to eat it. For good luck it wasn’t poisonous, although you had to live solely on cold milk and ice cream for several days, because it stung your mouth…”  
Sugoroku sighed, as he remembered how happy three-years old Yuugi had been, when they had gone swimming at the beach the first time.

Humming, Jou cut off Kaiba’s clothes, inbetween hitting this one’s broken arm when he tried to defend himself. So far, the blond had managed to rid his former tomentor of his shirt and pants and was now aproaching the blue boxers.  
“Forty-seven white dragons, a-hanging at the wall, and if one white dragon should accident’ly fall..”  
Seto hissed, when the knife cut into flesh and grazed bone, leaving a huge gash on his left hip.  
“You know, you’re a little too talkative, if you ask me. Now, what could be done against that..?”  
Blue eyes widened in terror, and he tried to bite Jou, when this one’s hand aproached his face. He squirmed, bucked, flailed and all of a sudden, with a blinding white pain, his left hand came free and he struck Katsuya with all he got.  
The knife, which was still imbedded in his hand, left a deep cut on Jou’s right cheek, making the blond snarl in pain and anger. He snatched the hold of the knife and twisted it sharply.  
Kaiba only gurgled, when he felt the bones in his palm shatter into fragments.  
And suddenly, there were fingers inside his mouth, forcing his jaw open and taking hold of his tongue. Fingernails bit into the slippery muscle, pulled and tore, and then his mouth filled with blood, a split-second before his brain caught up with the overwhelming agony of his organ being severed.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
Yes, there will be more bloodshed to come..much more.


	20. Screaming

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There is gore and more to come..and so is pain.

_20\. Screaming_

Otogi sat down gingerly, not really knowing what to say. Finally, he decided to start with an apology.  
“I’m sorry, Yuugi. I’m sorry, that I accused you of cheating against Pegasus and for forcing your best friend to publicly humiliate himself. It’s just, I, well, you know…”

Coughing and sobbing, Seto tried to escape from underneath Jou, but the blond only snickered.  
“And if one white dragon should accident’ly fall-do you believe in karma, Kaiba?”  
Seto didn’t, but he didn’t like the implication either. His whole body, particularly his left hand and the stump of his tongue were almost driving him insane with pain, his body trembling with agony and he felt somehow light-headed from the blood-loss. Still, he had a backup-plan, it was not more than an idea born out of self-preservation and utter despair, but this wasn’t the time to be picky.  
Feigning defeat, he went limp as Jou sauntered closer, crimson-coated blade switching from hand to hand. Just as the shorter boy bent down to take hold of Kaiba’s boxers, the CEO reacted swiftly and used his good leg for a roundhouse kick towards Katsuya’s head. Kaiba’s heel connected soundly with the blond’s jaw, sending him tumbling towards the far side of the room, semi-concious.  
This was Kaiba’s chance as he tried to scramble to his feet and escape Jou’s room.  
It took him several tries just to rise, because his left leg wouldn’t really support him. Jou had probably severed a sinew or at least tangented it. Still, he wouldn’t be stopped.  
Gritting his teeth, Seto tried to open the lock, which caused him quite a lot of difficulties, seeing as his right arm was useless and the knife was still imbedded in his left hand.  
Finally, with an angry snarl, Kaiba grabbed the hold of the knife with his teeth and pulled it free with a couple of sharp, desperate yanks.  
He let the blade drop from his bloodied lips, tears flowing down freely over his pale cheeks. Now if he could only manage to unlock the door and turn the knob…

Petting what was left of his tri-colored strands, Anzu moved her lips in silent words, as she said farewell to Yuugi.  
“I remember when you first came into our class, and everybody made jokes about how short you were. But I couldn’t help but stare at your beautiful eyes and the shy smile you gave, when sensei introduced you. Everything I had ever looked for in a guy was standing right in front of me, and all I had to do was reach out my hand and take yours, asking you if we could be friends. You stared at my hand, uncertain, and then you smiled at me again, a smile so full of joy and gratefulness, it almost made me cry. That’s when I promised myself, I would always stand by your side, no matter what may come…”

His head was pulled back and then smashed repeatedly against the door. The impact was hard enough to crack his cheekbone and rattle his teeth. Had his tongue not already been cut out, he most likely would have bit it off. Trying to will away the dizzy spell and approaching unconciousness, he heard his koinu whisper:  
“Didn’t y’ know, asshole? What goes around, comes around. The _eye_ told me so.”  
Panting, Kaiba tried to push backwards, to get away from the door and, mostly, Jou, but then something cold whispered through his boxers, slicing them apart and leaving his buttocks exposed and vulnerable, and Seto frozen in pure horror.  
No.  
He wouldn’t possibly-?

“To be honest, at first I was jealous about your friendship with Jou. All those years, it had always been him and me, Honda and Jou, Jou and Honda, and then, all of a sudden, he referred to you as his best friend. It took me a long while until I understood why he did so. I saw it in the way he used to talk with and around you. He tried to be less violent, less rude, but with me-he always talked and acted the way he felt-was-like. He didn’t need to hide his bad..behaviour-demeanor, because I understood him, knew him on a level no one else did. I was-am-his brother. In anything but blood. And once I realized that, I could..let go of him, without it hurting…”

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
It always struck me as odd, at how easily Hiroto just accepted being set aside for Yuugi. It was only when following the manga I realized, that where Yuugi is Jou's best friend, Honda is his confidant. Some things Jounouchi has done in the past, never mind how fun and forgiving and lighthearted he may seem, there is a callus on his soul he does not want Yuugi to ever know about.


	21. Believing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the eye said..what goes around, comes around

_21\. Believing_

The hardwood-coated steel door was freckled with crimson driplets, which escaped Seto’s mouth in a vast spray, as the young CEO tried futively not to cry out in agony.  
Fingernails, once perfectly maincured, now brittle and rough-edged, scratched over the polished surface, as Kaiba fought against the forceful intrusion of Jou’s cock.  
His puppy had rammed his length into him without preparation, the only lubricant Seto’s own blood, as the tender flesh of his abused rectum tore at the friction.  
He struggled, he fought with all he had, but each twist earned him another blow, every shove resulted in another punch, and even the slightest moan of defiance was rewarded with yet another cut from the knife Jou still weld.  
Groaning, the blond thrust faster and harder, seemingly trying to rip his captive into half, never once caring about the muted, near indecipharable curses and whimpers coming from his victim.  
Finally, after what seemed like hours to Seto, Katsuya threw his head back and roared in triumph, as he released himself deep within the CEO.  
Blood and semen intermingled, trickled down the brunet’s shaky legs in lazy rivulets before pooling at his feet in tiny puddles, as Jou pulled out of him.  
Moments passed, in which the only sounds disturbing the eerie silence were the occasional pants and sobs coming from the two young men. Then Katsuya grabbed Seto’s shoulder in a none too gentle hold and, swerving him around, snarled:  
“I’m not yet done with you, bastard!”  
Kaiba didn’t even had time to grunt in confusion, when something with the force of a sledgehammer crushed into his face and sent him spiraling into darkness.

Mokuba shifted under his light-blue comforters, a slight frown passing over his innocent face. A soft sigh rose his chest, before the boy settled again, dreamless sleep undisturbed.

He regained conciousness just in time to realize that Jou was forcing his semi-errect member past his lips, and tried to push it out. Alas, a sharp pain reminded him of his lacking tongue, and by this time, Jou’s cock was already hitting his tonsils.  
“Y’ know, deep-throating’s real easy to learn-either you relax, or you suffocate. Not that it really matters to me, but I hate fucking dead people” snickered the blond above him, before all mirth dropped from his face and he started pushing in in earnest.  
Seto had no other choice but to comply, because Jou had the CEO’s head in a deathlock, long digits fisting his silky chestnut tresses as he pistoned in and out of the warm, blood-coated orifice.  
The brunet tried in vain to claw at Jou’s hips, legs, torso, arms, anything to escape the torture, each time the tip of the blond’s swollen penis hit the back of his throat it blocked his airway, creating a steadily raising panic in Seto.  
And then his face was ground into Jou’s crotch, one knee and both hands blocking his head from moving even a fraction, as the blond pumped his seed in thick, salty portions down his troat, screaming Seto’s name.  
Katsuya remained like that, unseeing gaze fixed at the ceiling, crying and laughing all the same, sweat and tears runing over his cheeks, even as Kaiba felt his lungs constricting with the need for oxygen.  
His head was released and fell back, the brunet coughing and heaving, trying to regain his breath whilst he felt himself fainting yet again.  
A few soft taps on his cheek, almost tender at the touch, brought him back to awareness. Golden, somewhat unfocused eyes bore into his own clouded blue ones, as his puppy whispered:  
“Wakey, wakey. Now comes the good stuff.”

Delicate black, perfectly swung brows drew together in confusion, just to ease anew.

This time, he screamed.  
He wailed like a damned soul, when the knife tore through his pectoral muscle, the radical not quite done.  
“Hold still, you don’t want me to start all over again, don’tcha?” snapped Katsuya, as he started on the second kanji.  
°“Me’hi, me’hi,o’he’hai, me’hii!”  
Kaiba Seto, the man known to be both ruth-and fearless, was crying, sobbing, pleading like a little child, as Jounouchi Katsuya carved the word ‘guilt’ into his flesh, slowly, carefully, never missing one single dot or curve.  
When he was done, he traced the wounds with his fingers, gently, amost lovingly, before dipping his head and lapping every single drop of blood from Kaiba’s chest.  
The scream high-pitched, before cutting off abruptly.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

°Merci, merci, onegai, merci


	22. Dreaming

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It is with this chapter that I'll break your hearts.

_22\. Dreaming_

“Muutou-san, I understand this is..difficult for you, but-“  
“No, not yet.” The old man shook his head in refuse.  
“Give him-us-just..one more hour, sensei. Please.”  
The doctor nodded in understanding, moving away from the life-preservating machines and exiting the room.  
Silence claimed the small circle of friends surrounding Yugi’s bed.

Mokuba mumbled in his sleep, chewing on a non-existent mochi, before yawning and blinking his eyes open. Had that been-no impossible, he must have dreamt about an engine being started and a car taking off with screeching tires…

Tears pooled out of his blue eyes, but he didn’t care anymore.  
Nothing existed but the pain, vibrating through every single fiber of his being, but mostly, his heart.  
His puppy had left.  
He was not coming back.  
And he had no one to blame but himself.

Puzzled, the nurse doing the nightshift scanned the desk before her.  
Everything was in disarray, although she could have sworn, she had stacked the files and carts neatly upon one another before she had gone to the bathroom.  
Perhaps she _really_ needed a vacation.

He needed to pee, but he was too lazy to get up. Besides, outside was cold, and his covers were so warm and comfy…

The scenery was breathtaking in its simple beauty:  
From an endless, pale-blue sky shone a bright, yet not glaring sun, the birds’ song filling the air. Cherry trees, in full bloom, lined the shores of the vast river gently whispering beneath him, winding itself past the flower-sprinkled mounds and hills surrounding him.  
‘Where am I?’

Six pairs of eyes stared in disbelief at the dark-clad figure standing in the wide open door.  
Before anyone could react or even utter a single word, Jounouchi had crossed the care ward with four long strides and came to a halt next to the bed.  
His gaze traveled over the broken body of his best friend, and he let out a small, choked sob.  
Carefull as to not hurt him any further, he took hold of one of Yuugi’s hand. Gently rubbing his thumb across the bandaged limb, he croaked out:  
“I..I’m sorry Yuug’. I-I couldn’t stop him…couldn’t save you…”  
Bitter tears strangled the rest of his words.

‘That was _too_ close for my taste. Note to self: no more hot chocolate right before going to bed. At least not three cups full.’ Mokuba moaned, in his haste he had forgotten to put on slippers.  
And the marble floor was icy.

Jou looked up, when he felt, or rather saw, a slender hand touching his shoulder.  
Purple met amber, and Jou’s heart broke, when he read the truth in those sad depths.  
Yami nodded, his form fading more and more with every passing moment, even as Katsuya shook his head and embraced Yuugi’s still form in a tight hug, not wanting to let go.  
A soft sigh shook him aware.

The pain had faded, leaving him naked and hollow with nothing to focus on.  
He thought, he dreamed-imagined? hallucinated?-he had heard the quiet running of water and even softer footsteps, but that was probably only his mind playing tricks on him.

Amethyst orbs, once sparkling with joy and life, now dull, fading pebbles, stared at their surroundings, before coming to rest upon the worried face of a blond youth.  
“..J..jou..?”  
A whisper beyond whispers, but it reverberated through the entire dorm.

“It is time, Yuugi.”  
The tri-color haired boy turned around to see his darker half standing there, arms invitingly opened. Letting himself fall into the offered comfort, he mumbled:  
“But-but what about the others-?”  
A single finger against his lips halted his protest. Yami smiled down at him.  
“Everything will be fine. They will understand.”

It was not supposed to be this cold. Was there an open window? Mokuba patted through the dimly lit hall towards his room, when he felt a chill caressing his naked feet.  
Following the draft, the raven-haired boy found himself in front of Jou’s door.  
Which, to his surprise, was locked.

A small wave of the hand, a mouthed farewell, and Yami was gone.

Seto had no more tears to cry.  
And nothing left to cry about.  
Except…  
‘Gomen nasai, outoto. I know, I promised’ he thought.  
All bitterness, all pain and hatred washed away with his final words:  
°“Ai’e’u, ‘a’uya. Ai..e…’u…”

The faintest of smiles graced Yugi’s busted lips.  
With a contented sigh, he closed his eyes again.  
“..’riga..to…”

Huffing under his breath, Mokuba paused before the door, before inserting the key and turning the knob.

Jou stared in disbelief at the empty husk that used to be his best friend.  
Finally, hesitantly, he let go of him, gently placing him back on his pillows. His lips brushed Yuugi’s in a soft kiss, before the blond turned around and stormed out of the care ward, his sister and friends still too shocked with what they had witnessed, than to stop him.  
It was the last they ever saw of Jou.

_“ONII-SAAN!!!”_

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

°Aishteru, Katsuya, aishteru


	23. Leaving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quiet and sad, loss and grief

_23\. Leaving_

They buried them next to each other, seeing as they had died at exactly the same time, 04.13 am.  
Everybody was there, even the Ishtar’s, to give the two duelists the final honours.  
Muutou Sugoroku was a broken man; he had aged incredibly over the past few days and couldn’t find the strength within him to even cry.  
Anzu did, and although there was no sound, her body shook with the sobs whacking it.  
Honda and Shizuka stood next to each other, each supporting the other one. Both had lost their brother, but the young man had to say good-bye to his two best friends aswell.  
He really didn’t know, if he could go on anymore.  
Shizuka felt sad. For Yami, for Yuugi, for Jou, even for Seto. But mostly for Jou.  
Her brother had returned to life, just to have his best friend die in his arms.  
Green-brown eyes glanced at Honda’s chest.  
Jou’s dogtags had arrived the day before with the mail, and although no note or letter was included, the unspoken message was clear:  
Honda had been donned with the role of her protector, because Jou would no longer be able to do so.  
Otogi was both jealous and relieved. He knew, it would have been too much of a burden for him to carry, never mind how much he liked the younger girl.  
Even though he had befriended Yuugi, Honda and, in time, Jou, he had always felt a little left out.  
Still, he couldn’t help the tears escaping his emerald eyes.

Mokuba was the silent mourner.  
No tears, no sobs, no cries.  
The boy only stared at the ground, movements automated and gaze absent, as he put his elder brother to rest.  
However, he refused to be taken from the graveyard, and after several failed attempts of coaxing him into the waiting limo, his bodyguard only shook his head and left the young boy standing there.

In the deserted graveyard, the boy’s form stood out like a dark candle.  
Leather, softly rustling on cloth, announced the black-clad figure coming to a stop next to the boy.  
“I’m sorry.”  
Mokuba, nodded, then sighed and, for the first time in days, rose his head to stare at the wooden plate engraved with Seto’s name.  
“Why did you have to-“  
“It was either him or me. Sooner than later, it would have been me.”  
Minutes passed in silence, only disturbed by the soft pitter-patter of the rain which had started falling. Finally, the man asked:  
“You knew, what he did to me?”  
Again, Mokuba nodded. This time a single tear trickled down his cheek, only to be brushed away by a strong, calloused finger.  
“I..I knew it, but, I-I couldn’t stop him. He was-was so..happy, he always..smiled…”  
A choked sob, before he concluded:  
“He..he really loved you, you know?”  
The face beneath the well-trimmed black hair contracted a moment in a pained expression, but the eyes remained hidden beneath dark bangs and even darker sunglasses.  
“I know. It..it could have been magic.”  
Mokuba watched the young man’s adam’s apple move up and down, as the elder fought with his tears.  
A small hand was offered and enclosed by a larger one, each sharing the hurt and comfort of the other.  
Finally, the younger one sighed and whispered:  
“What should I do now. I’m all alone…”  
“No, you’re not. And you know it. They’ll always be there for you.”  
Mokuba blinked.  
“What about-Kaiba Corp?”  
A smile, teetering on the egde of being a smirk, quirked the elder’s lips.  
“You’ve seen the best at work. I know you can make it. You’re smart and strong and you got people backing you up.”  
One slender hand snuck into Mokuba’s coat, dropping a folded sheet into the inner pocket, even as the young man bent down and rasped:  
“Remember, if you should ever _really_ need me, I’ll be there. Wakarimashita?”*  
Blue-grey eyes glistened, and then Mokuba threw his arms around the elder one’s neck, sobbing:  
“Yes. A-arigato gozaimasu, Jounouchi.”  
Returning the embrace, the former blond hushed:  
“It’s the least I can do.”

Watching the younger Kaiba enter the limo, Jou frowned.  
_“You need to get out of here” whispered the eye hovering over his left shoulder._  
Katsuya shook his head.  
“There’s one more thing left to do.”

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
No. Jounouchi didn't get better.

*Wakarimashita: understood


	24. Dancing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And for the final chapter, once more glorious gore -in abundance.

_24\. Dancing_

Takayama Yoshiyaku felt..uncomfortable.  
It was close to midnight, and although this area was his turf, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was about to go terribly wrong.  
He shouldn’t have come here.  
Then again, who was he to refuse an offer of three million Yen just for showing up? After all, the money had been there, waiting for him, lots of mixed bills with variating series numbers. Considering the amount of money and the fact that the person at the other end of the line used Kaiba’s very own phone, he most likely was one of the departed CEO’s assistants.  
Still, he usually didn’t-  
“You’re punctual. I appreciate that.”  
Letting go of the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding, Takayama turned to the owner of the voice he recognized from the short phone talk.  
He closed the distance between him and the dark-clad figure, but before he could even nod a greeting, something heavy impacted with his temple, knocking him unconcious.

Both hands had been expertly tied together, his shoulders groaning in protest when he tested the binds. He was naked, dangling helplessly from a chain coming down from the darkness above him and his legs were spread wide, ropes pulling them apart while keeping him in place.  
Blue-green eyes scanned his surroundings and then he felt his throat tightening in fear.  
“I see you remember this place. I’m sure, Anzu would too, ne?”  
Jou smirked when he sauntered closer, enjoying the look of confusion on Takayama’s face.  
“Who-who are you?” Black bangs were brushed away to reveal amber eyes.  
“Call me..Amend. That’s all you need to know.”  
Something cold, hard and ragged was driven into the bound man’s side, pierced his liver and forced a cry out of him.  
Panting, Takayama gazed down at the wound, his eyes widening in disbelief.  
“A..an industrial-sized nail? That, that-“  
He glared at Jou.  
“Who-who sent you?”  
This time the nail was forced into his armpit, tearing the muscles and puncturing his right lung.  
Over his own howl, Takayama could barely hear something heavy being pulled over the floor, creating a screeching, metal-on-tar sound. Blinking, he found Jou standing next to a metal barrel, flames shooting out from the container.  
With a disturbing grin, the youth reached out and took hold of Takayama’s cock, even as one heavily gloved hand grabbed something from within the fire.  
Red-glowing, needle-sharp and at least twice the length of his index finger, the splinter was forced into the tiny slit at the tip of his cock, then further down the urethra.  
“I didn’t know the human throath was even _capable_ of producing such sounds” purred Jou, as he watched the man screeching, squirming and bucking in agony.  
He strode over to a bag sitting in the corner and pulled out a bottle. Beaming, he shook it at Takayama.  
“Hey look, sake! Now let’s have some fun, ne?”  
Pouring some of the clear alcohol over the other one’s testicles, Jou brought out a lighter and set the liquid aflame.  
He watched in amused interest, how the fire first consumed the mass of pubic hair before the heat caused the foreskin to sizzle and shrink until it tore and burst with an almost inaudible wet pop.  
Looking up into Takayama’s face, Jou frowned.  
It was only half the fun when the victim was unconcious.

The icy water shocked him back into awareness.  
Unluckily, because the next thing he knew was the skin from his inner left thigh being removed.  
Jou dangled the bloody piece of tissue in front of his face, and the sight was too much, even for him.  
The teen only just managed to avoid the flood of puke before it hit the floor.  
He glared at Takayama, furious, and the man shivered, when he recognized the insane rage in those dark honey eyes.  
Suddenly, Jou was right in front of him, pushing his head back and, placing a blade at the elder’s collarbone, sliced him open from side to side, carefully, as to not cause any fatal damage.  
Cutting down vertically, Jou could now rather easily tear strips of skin from Takayama’s bleeding chest, leaving a bizzare mosaik on named one’s torso.  
After repeatedly ripping off tissue and spraying more sake on him, Jou grew bored. Tossing the bottle carelessly into a corner, he stalked over to his bag, rummaged around and removed a second glove from it, before he returned to the still burning fire.  
What emerged the ambers this time was a steel pipe, the metal shining yellow and radiating off an immense heat.  
Grinning, Jou came to stand before Takayama, holding the pipe like a bat.  
“Remember Yugi?” WHACK!  
“He was my best friend.” Thud!  
“He was the sweetest,“-crack- “nicest,”-slap-“most caring,”-whudd-”gentle person,” -thudd-“I’d ever met. And because of you”-phutt-“and Kaiba,”-thwack-“now he’s”-whtt-“dead!”  
Panting, Jou paused to catch his breath and admire his handiwork. He must have broken every single bone in Takayama’s body, save for his skull, that is. Everywhere the pipe had touched it had left burn marks, their intensity fading as the steel had cooled off.  
The rod was placed back inside the glowing amber to reheat, off came the gloves and once again, the blade glistened in Jou’s hand.  
Takyama couldn’t scream anymore, try as much as he wanted, his throath was too dry and raw, but the croak was still very audible when the knife sunk into his flesh, dug into the muscle and removed both nipples, leaving deep, seeping holes.  
“Sheesh, you should get those wounds treated. Here, lemme help you.”  
Hot steel cautheterized the wound, but the flesh stuck to the gleaming surface and reopened, bleeding even more than before.  
Smiling, Jou patted Takayama’s abdomen before circling him and, whistling a happy tune, shoved the pipe up his anus.  
In and out whent the steel rod, drying blood and feces coating the metal with a flaky, red-brown pulp.  
By the time Jou was satisifed, Takayama had fainted again.

He was beginning to hate cold water, because it always brought him back into a world of pain.  
“Now speaking is Professor Jounouchi Katsuya, his topic: basic anatomy. When dissecting a human, you must make sure to cut deep enough to slice through the abdominal muscles, but not so deep as to injure the internal organs. Observe.”  
Continuing his lecture, Jou drove the knife carefully into Takayama’s belly, cut a few fingerbroad to the left and then down, before he removed it again.  
His fingers drove into the created pocket and Takayama felt the diggits inside him moving, tearing, ripping at his organs.  
The last thing he saw were his intestines being pulled out of the gaping wound, and then darkness consumed him.

“-body was found in the same abandoned building young Mazaki Anzu had been held captive. Investigation revealed that the murdered man, one Takayama Yokuyashi was indeed the kidnapper and rapist of the young girl. Still, even as we speak, the search for the missing Jounouchi Katsuya-“

The radio was shut off, even as the driver let the engine roar and drove the black Datsun up the freeway, heading north.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
Amends have been made, the dead vindicated..all that remains is the epilogue, ne?


	25. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now, I would hate to leave you off on such a dark note..so here's a little something to end this story on a quasi-high note.

_Epilogue:_   
_Six years later_

Smiling, twenty-one years old Kawai Shizuka stepped out of the main building of Osaka Kyoiku University and run towards the parking lot, waving happily at her boyfriend of three years, Honda Hiroto .  
The tall brunet rose his hand to return the greeting, when loud honking made him pause.  
Turning his head to the right and grinning, he said:  
“Perfect, right on shedule!”  
The sleek red Mazda RX8 rolled to a stop between him and Shizuka and a slender youth of maybe eighteen years emerged the sportscar.  
”Kaiba Mokuba, CEO and multi-millionaire, reporting for duty!” mock-saluted the raven-haired teen.

Against all odds and puplic belief, Mokuba had indeed managed to follow in his brother’s footsteps.  
Given, the first two years had been disastreous; it had taken an enormous amount of continuous mental therapy to help him come to terms with Seto’s death.  
He still had nightmares, but they grew more and more random.  
With the help of Muutou-san, Honda, Shizuka, Anzu and Otogi as well as his two most trusted assistants, the young boy had managed to live up to Seto’s legacy and return Kaiba Corp to its former glory.  
He had even realized his brother’s life-long dream and errected Kaiba Land, complete with each a Blue Eyes White Dragon and Dark Magician Theme Park, to honour both Seto and Yugi.  
The maze, however, carried Jounouchi’s name.

“Ok, how fast can you get us to Kansai? Anzu’s plane is landing in less than two hours” worried Honda.   
Mokuba chuckled, as the couple squeezed itself into the backseat.  
“Two hours? This baby eats the distance in under 58 minutes!”  
“You know, I don’t really want to find ooouu-_Mokiieeeee-!!!_”

Anzu smiled tiredly, as she was hugged from three sides and then escorted to the waiting car; Honda and Mokuba carrying her luggage. Shizuka beamed at the other woman.  
“So, is it true what I heard? You’re really going to play in ‘Futari en trois couleurs’?”  
The elder brunette smiled, before nodding and signing:  
“Hai, we will be touring for at least four seasons, if all works well, and I got a two years contract as the main lead.”  
“Anzu, that’s just great! See, I told you you would make it!” cheered Mokuba, and Honda congratulated her as well.

It had been hard, a rocky path filled with pain, despair and tears, but Mazaki Anzu had proven to be strong enough to make her dream come true and go to study classic and modern dance in New York and learn sign language at the same time.  
She had been scarred deeply, both physical and emotional, and her recovery had been an almost inhuman task.  
Often she had thought of giving up, but every time she even as much as showed the tiniest bit of weakness, her friends and most of all, Mokuba, had been there to pull her through.  
And now she was indeed a dancer, and one of the best as well.

Shizuka, quiet, calm and gentle, had surprisingly been the rock in the current.  
Finishing High School, she had followed Honda to Osaka to study medicine.  
Although her brother had disappeared, she had found a new one in Honda and, over the years, a man she could look up to and trust as implicitly as Jou.  
In her heart, Katsuya would always remain second-to-none, and she had waited for his return many a night, although there was never a sign of him.  
Her world shattered, when she had to accept the fact that Jou would never come back again, be it dead or alive, but once she had managed to let go of her o-nii-san, she had grown to love Honda for whom he was.

Honda, who had fallen a little behind, watched the two young women chattering amiably, his chestnut eyes resting on his girlfriend.  
“You should ask her soon, Honda. I know she’s only waiting for you to make the first step, _senpai._”  
The brunet smiled; ever since Honda had started taking psychology, physio-pathology, ethics and philosophy as main studies, the younger Kaiba had stuck him with this honoration, because the elder still tried to understand what exactly had driven Seto and Jou to snap and do the things they had done.  
And yet, sometimes it seemed _he_ was the freshman, because Mokuba had a deeper understanding for people than one would give the teen credit for.  
Sighing, Honda confessed:  
“I know, it’s just-I’m scared, you know? What if she rejects me? I-I couldn’t stand to loose her, too.”  
“You’ll knever know if you don’t-uhg!”  
“Gomen, I didn’t see you there. Here you go” mumbled the stranger, who had bumped into Honda and almost knocked him over, managing to catch him at the last possible moment. He pulled the slightly shorter brunet up, dusted his shirt off a little and took a step back. A nod from a head adorned with red, short-cropped hair, the flash of a guilty smile, the faint twinkle of sunglasses, and the man gave curt bow before brushing past the two baffled friends and heading for the gates.  
“As I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted: don’t keep her waiting, Honda” added Mokuba, but the brunet wasn’t listening.  
He stared at the little note which had somehow found its way into his shirt pocket.

‘I’ll be seeing you at the wedding.’

_owari_

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°  
Once more, thank you for (re)reading, liking and reviewing this probably darkest, most disturbing story I ever wrote. And give a warm nod of gratitude to Cleopatra/empressoflight, because without her request, this story would never had made it here.

For all it's worth, Cleopatra, I will write one shortfic just for you. Arigatou gozaimasu.


End file.
